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IHrROYEMENT 


Oro^anof  -the -Seventies  and  theyoung_Mens 
Mutueil  Improvement  As-sociation-s 


Vol.  XL     MARCH.  1908.    No.  5. 

Published  Monlh'y  at  Salt  Lake  City  by  the  General  Board 
^2.00  P£R  ANNUM 


It  Is  dangerous  to  create  public  apathy 
and  everything  should  be  done  to  avoid  es- 
tablishing such  a  condition  of  affairs.  The 
grasping  corporations  feel  indifferent  to  the 
wants  of  the  masses,  and  this  has  caused 
them  to  be  denounced  most  vehemently  by 
the  public,  and  the  recent  insurance  expos- 
ures  have  caused  a  feeling  bordering  close 
onto  resentfulness.  You  will  not  have  occa- 
sion to  feel  that  way  If  we  handle  your  In- 
surance. We  will  place  your  policies  with 
companies  whose  business  methods  are 
above  reproach  and  which  have  not  been 
mentioned  in  the  recent  revelations  that 
have  startled  the  public.  Let  us  take  care 
of  your  Are  insurance,  and  we  will  assure 
you  that  you  will  feel  satisfied  and  eafe  in 
every  respect. 

HEBER  Jo  GRANT  &  CO. 

GENERAL  INSURANCE 
20-26  South  Main  Salt  Lake  City 


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and  Licensed  Embalmer. 

Fine  Funeral  Chapel,  Private  Parlor, 
Show  Rooms  and  Morgue. 

OrncE  Open  Day  and  Night. 

21, 28, 25  SOUTH  WEST  TEMPLE  ST. 

SALT  LAKE  CITY,  UTAH. 


ESTABLISHED  1889. 

UTAH  COMMERCIAL 

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dividuals solicited.  Customers  assured 
the  best  accommodations  consistent 
with  conservative  and  safe  banking. 


WM.  F.  ARMSTRONG. 
President. 


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Cashier. 


$m  money 

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IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

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The  STATE    BANK 

r\T7   Tinr  A  XJ     SaULake  CUy,  Utah 
yJr     \J   1  l\  n.    Estdblished  1890  .  .. 


^M^HIS  bank  solicits  the  accounts  of 
£  I  banks ,firms  and  individuals,  and 
\m  extends  to  such  customers  every 
reasonable  courtesy  and  facility. 


Jos.  F.  Smith,    Prest.    Chas.  S.  Burton,  Cashier 
Anthon  H.Lund,V.  Pres.  H.T.McEwan.Asst.Cash. 


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79TH    ANNUAL 

COMFERENOE 

SALT   LAKE    CITY 
APRIL   4,   5.  6.    1908 

TJBUAL    LOY^^    RATE 

VIA 


All}  Arizona  or  Texas  agent  can  ticket  you  via  Col- 
ton  or  Daggett,  Cal.,  and  the  SALT  LAKE  ROUTE. 
For  further  information  write: 

C.  PECK.  G.   P.  A..     J.  H.  BURTNER.  D.  P.  A.. 

LOS   A>rGELES.  SALT  LAKE  CITY. 


ARTIFICIAL  REFRIGERATION  AT  ItARKET  AND  SLAUCHTER  HOUSE 

Palace  Meat  Market 

THOS.  J.  NIPPER,  Pfoprietof 

Wholesale  and  Retail 
FRESH  AND  CURED  MEATS,  FISH, 
POULTRY  AND  GAME 
IN  SEASON 

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west,  and  everything  is  properly  chilled  before  serv- 
ing the  customer. 


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IMPROVEMENT  ERA,  MARCH,   1908. 


Joseph  P.  Smith,  i  Editors 

Edward  H.  Anderson,    ) 


Hebeb  J.  Grant,  Business  Manager 
Alpha  J.  Higgs,  Assistant 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


The  Philosophy  of  Faith  and  Worship 

Wasatch  Mountains— In  Cottonwood  Canyon 

What  of  the  Home-Coming? — A  Narrative  Based 

on  Real  Life 

Thoughts  of  a  Farmer— V.  The  Test  of  Goodness 

and  Value,  in  Horses  and  Men 

The  Answer  to  Death.     A  Poem 

Romance  of  a  Missionary— V.    The  Green  Lanes 

of  England 

A  Fragment  of  Early  Church  History 

In  the  Petrified  Forests  of  Arizona.  (Illustrated).... 
For  the   Increase  of    Faith — Sacredness    of    the 

Temple— Aid  From  Beyond  the  Veil 

A  Tribute  to  Margaret  Hull 

The  Church  of  Latter-days.    A  Poem 

The  Boy  Problem.    III.    What  the   Schools  Can 

Do 

Say  a  Word  of  Happiness.    A  Poem  

The  World's  Great  Religions.  III.  Confucianism.. 

The  Cross  of  Sorrow.    A  Poem 

Editor's    Table— "I    Know    that    my     Redeemer 

Lives." 

Messages  from  the  Missions... 

Notes 

Seventy's   Council   Table 

Mutual  Work — Hawaiian  M.  I.   A. — Mutual  Notes 
Events  and  Comments 


William  Halls 


321 
329 


D.  H.  Fowler 330 


Dr.  Joseph  M.  Tanner. 
Harvey  H.  Gates 


Nephi  Anderson 

Edward  H.  Anderson. 


Heber  J.  Grant 

Susa  Young  Gates. 
Theo.  E.  Curtis 


Dr.  E.  G.  Gowans 

Lon.  J.  Haddock 

Prof.  Levi  Edgar  Young. 
Maud  Baggarley 


Prest.  Joseph  F.  Smith 


B.H.  Roberts. 


Edward  H.  Anderson  and 
Dr.  J.  M.  Tanner 


338 
341 

342 
353 
359 

361 
364 
368 

369 
374 

375 
378 

379 
388 
390 
391 
394 

395 


Entered  at  the  Post  Office,  Salt  Lake  City,  as  Second-Class  Matter 


SCENIC    LINE    or    THE    WORLD 


/)  panorama 
Of  l^fatural 
Beauty  ail 
ripe  U/ay. 


Canyon  of  the  Grande  Canyon  of  the  Gunnison 
Eagle  l(iver  Canyon  Garden  of  the  Gods 

Wa  jon  Wheel  Gap  Manitou  Springs 

Glenwood  Springs  The  Royal  Gorge 


THROUGH 

PULLMAN  AND  TOURIST  SLEEPERS 

TO  DENVER,  ST.  LOUIS  AND  CHICAGO 

for  Folders,  BookleU.  etc  .  address  I.  A.  BENTON.  Gi  A.  P.  D.,  Salt  Lake  City.  UUh 


(  W'hf n  wrilini;  to  All\■^■^tisl.•^•^.  jiIc-kc  nientioii  the   \\K\^ 


IMPROVEMENT   ERA. 


Vol.  XL  MARCH,  1908.  No.  5. 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  FAITH  AND  WORSHIP. 


BY   WILLIAM   HALLS. 


Why  should  men  exercise  faith?  Why  engage  in  Divine  wor- 
ship? In  this  age  of  education  and  philosophy,  with  a  learned 
skepticism  or  "higher  criticism"  seeking  to  cast  a  doubt  on  the 
truth  of  the  scriptures,  it  may  be  well  to  consider  what  intelligent 
reason  underlies  these  principles. 

If  asked  why  we  ride  on  the  railroad  cars,  we  might  answer, 
because  that  is  the  easiest  and  quickest  way  to  travel;  if,  why  we 
build  a  bridge  across  the  river,  we  would  say,  because  the  safest 
way  to  cross  is  over  a  bridge.  For  many  other  things  \^e  do,  we 
might  give  a  good  reason. 

But  if  asked  why  we  build  a  chapel,  and  meet  to  sing  and  pray, 
and  worship  an  object  above,  whom  we  neither  see,  hear  nor  feel 
with  our  material  senses,  many  a  good  Christian  might  hesitate 
before  giving  an  intelligent  answer.  Not  that  no  good  reason  may 
be  given,  but  because  many  of  us  worship  all  our  lives  intuitively, 
or,  as  a  matter  of  tradition,  without  thinking  of  the  reason  why. 

We  know  many  things  in  nature  to  be  true  that  we  cannot 
easily  explain.  For  example,  two  plants  are  growing  side  by  side 
in  the  same  soil,  drawing  their  life  apparently  from  precisely  the 
same  elements:  one  is  good  to  eat,  and  if  taken  into  the  stomach 
will  sustain  life;  the  other  is  deadly  poison,  and  if  eaten  will  de- 


322  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

stroy  life.  Of  a  pair  of  twins,  one  has  black  hair  and  a  very  dark 
skin,  the  other  has  red  hair  and  very  fair  skin.  The  vocal  organs 
in  all  men  are  constructed  on  the  same  principle,  yet  no  two  voices 
are  alike.  These,  with  a  hundred  other  things,  are  true,  yet  not 
easily  explained.  If  we  are  conscious  of  so  many  natural  truths 
that  we  cannot  explain,  may  we  not  be  equally  conscious  of  inex- 
plicable spiritual  truths? 

The  skeptic  ridicules  the  Christian  for  his  credulity,  and  pities 
him  for  his  simple  faith  and  blind  obedience.  But  is  not  the  skeptic 
just  as  much  a  child  of  faith  in  natural  things  as  the  Christian  is 
in  spiritual  things? 

The  skeptic,  who  prides  himself  on  his  freedom  from  supersti- 
tion, who  takes  nothing  for  granted,  who  will  see  the  depth  of 
the  pool  before  plunging  in,  who  takes  no  chances  of  being  im- 
posed upon,  when  he  becomes  sick,  goes  to  a  doctor,  who  tells 
him  he  has  a  certain  disease,  that  he  can  help  him,  that  it  is  a 
serious  case,  and  any  further  delay  may  prove  fatal.  How  does  he 
know  that  the  doctor  is  telling  him  the  truth;  that  he  is  not  im- 
posing on  him,  for  professional  or  selfish  purposes?  Can  the  doc- 
tor prove  his  word?  that  is  impossible;  yet  the  man  puts  himself 
under  his  care.  He  who  will  not  exercise  a  particle  of  faith  in  the 
word  of  a  doctor  of  divinity  to  save  his  immortal  soul,  exercises  a 
simple,  child- like  faith  in  the  word  of  a  doctor  of  medicine  to  save 
his  mortal  body. 

A  man  wishes  to  travel  from  Salt  Lake  City  to  Liverpool,  he 
buys  a  ticket  for  New  York,  and  boards  a  car.  On  his  way  he 
passes  through  several  large  cities;  he  doesn't  know  which  of 
these  is  New  York  until  he  is  told.  Of  all  the  steamers  in  the 
harbor,  he  doesn't  know  which  is  bound  for  Liverpool,  until  he  is 
told.  He  lands  in  a  large  city  which  they  tell  him  is  Liverpool; 
it  may  be  London,  for  aught  he  really  knows.  From  the  time  he 
leaves  Salt  Lake  City  till  he  arrives  in  Liverpool,  there  is  no  sec- 
ond of  time  when  he  really  knows  where  he  is,  or  in  what  direction 
he  is  moving;  he  gets  off  this  car  onto  that,  goes  here  and  there, 
does  this  or  that  as  he  is  directed,  in  simple  faith  and  blind  obedi- 
ence. It  is  hard  to  imagine  anyone  in  a  position  of  more  helpless 
dependence. 

A   company  of  farmers  wish  to  bring  water  onto  a  certain 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  FAITH  AND  WORSHIP.         323 

tract  of  land;  they  engage  an  engineer  who  surveys  a  line  for  a 
ditch.  He  tells  them  he  has  allowed  so  much  fall,  and  if  they 
make  ^'he  ditch  on  that  grade  the  water  will  run  all  right.  How 
do  they  know  that  is  true?  Can  he  prove  it?  that  is  impossible.  Yet 
they  spend  thousands  of  dollars  without  the  possibility  of  knowing 
they  are  right  till  they  see  the  water  running  in  their  ditch.  The 
exercise  of  this  faith  is  essential,  as  without  it  no  work  would  be 
done,  and  no  water  would  reach  their  land. 

In  the  natural  world,  without  the  exercise  of  faith,  the  wheels 
of  progress  would  cease  to  turn ;  business  would  be  paralyzed,  and 
human  life  become  extinct. 

As  in  the  natural  world,  so  in  the  spiritual,  men  must  move 
by  faith,  or  not  at  all.  When  Noah  predicted  the  flood,  he  could 
give  no  proof  that  his  word  was  true ;  it  was  a  matter  of  faith 
with  him;  as  we  read,  "By  faith  Noah,  being  warned  of  God  of 
things  not  seen  as  yet,  prepared  an  ark  to  the  saving  of  his 
house." 

When  Moses  predicted  the  destruction  of  the  firstborn  of 
Egypt,  he  had  no  proof  beyond  his  word;  and  this  prediction  was 
of  a  nature  very  hard  to  believe.  If  he  had  foretold  a  pestilence 
that  would  be  general  in  its  effects,  they  might  have  believed  him, 
as  they  had  suffered  from  several  plagues  before ;  but  to  say  that  a 
scourge  would  pass  over  the  land,  and  select  just  the  firstborn  in 
every  house  and  slay  him,  while  all  the  rest,  in  every  family,  with- 
out exception,  would  escape,  was  contrary  to  experience,  reason, 
and  common  sense.  When  the  destroyer  passed  over,  he  would 
not  be  likely  to  know  Hebrews  from  Egyptians;  he  would  be 
governed  by  the  sign  given  him,  and  when  he  saw  blood  on  the 
door-post,  he  would  pass  that  house  by;  so,  if  any  of  the  Egyp- 
tians by  faith  had  sprinkled  their  door-posts,  they  would  have 
saved  their  firstborn,  and  if  any  Hebrews,  through  lack  of  faith, 
had  failed  to  use  the  sign,  they  would  have  lost  their  firstborn. 
They  were  saved  from  natural  death  by  faith,  obedience,  and  the 
blood  of  the  lamb,  which  was  a  perfect  type  of  things  to  come, 
as  the  Christian  is  saved  from  spiritual  death  by  faith,  obedience, 
and  the  blood  of  the  Lamb. 

When  an  angel  announced  to  Joshua  that  by  the  blowing  of 
ram's  horns  and  shouting,  the  walls  of  Jericho  would  fall,  he  had 


324  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

no  proof,  and  such  a  thing  seemed  unreasonable,  Joshua  had  to 
move  entirely  by  faith, 

Jesus  said,  "My  doctrine  is  not  mine,  but  his  that  sent  me ; 
if  any  man  will  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine,  whether 
it  be  of  God,  or  whether  I  speak  of  myself."'  The  only  way  to 
prove  the  truth  of  that  promise  was  by  obedience  through  the  ex- 
ercise of  faith,  putting  it  to  the  test.  The  same  in  this  dispensa- 
tion; when  Joseph  Smith  announced  to  the  world  that  he  had  been 
called  of  God,  and  given  authority  to  preach  the  gospel  and  organ- 
ize the  Church  of  Christ,  and  he  called  on  the  people  to  believe  on 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  repent  of  their  sins,  and  be  baptized  for  the 
remission  thereof,  and  promised  them  that  they  should  receive  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  should  know  that  the  gospel  is  true,  and  that  he 
had  been  called  of  God,  the  proof  lay  entirely  with  the  people  in 
putting  it  to  the  test.  That  the  Saints  in  the  days  of  Christ  re- 
ceived a  witness  of  his  divine  mission,  that  he  was  the  Son  of  God, 
and  the  Redeemer  of  the  world,  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  they 
endured  all  manner  of  trials,  even  unto  death,  rather  than  deny 
their  testimony.  That  the  Saints  in  this  day  have  received  a  wit- 
ness of  the  divine  mission  of  Joseph  Smith,  and  the  truth  of  the 
gospel,  is  also  evident,  from  the  fact  that  the  elders  of  the  Church 
are  willing  to  leave  everything,  and  go  without  salary,  at  their 
own  expense,  suffering  all  manner  of  hardship  and  persecution, 
taking  their  lives  in  their  hands,  to  preach  the  gospel;  and 
that  those  who  receive  their  testimony  are  willing  to  leave  every- 
thing, and  gather  to  the  body  of  the  Church,  making  sacrifice  of 
all  things  for  the  gospel's  sake,  at  the  same  time  bearing  a  hum- 
ble testimony  that  they  know  the  gospel  is  true  and  that  Joseph 
Smith  is  an  inspired  prophet  of  God, 

There  is  no  doctrine,  theory  or  principle  whatever,  either  tem- 
poral or  spiritual,  that  can  be  proved  true,  only  by  experience 
through  the  exercise  of  faith.  This  is  not  merely  a  law,  it  is  an 
absolute,  eternal  condition;  it  is  not  the  work  of  designing  men; 
it  is  a  necessary,  self-evident  truth.  It  cannot  possibly  be  other- 
wise. It  cannot  be  changed  nor  modified  in  the  least  by  any  de- 
cree of  the  powers  of  earth  or  heaven.  The  infidel  says  to  the 
Christian,  if  the  gospel  is  true,  as  you  say  it  is,  why  does  not  the 
Lord  make  it  known  to  me?     Simply  because  that  is  impossible ;  a 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  FAITH  AND  WORSHIP.         325 

knowledge  of  truth  cannot  come  to  us  by  some  gracious  gift,  as  a 
special  favor.  Faith  may  come  by  hearing,  but  knowledge  comes 
by  the  exercise  of  faith.  By  a  strict  compliance  with  the  law  in- 
volved in  the  condition,  we  solve  the  problem,  and  verify  the  truth 
of  the  proposition.  Faith  is  the  gift  of  God,  and  is  offered  freely 
to  all  meu,  but  cannot  be  forced  upon  them.  The  will  of  man  is 
supreme;  by  his  agency,  he  can  accept  or  reject  the  offered  gift. 
This  makes  him  a  responsible,  accountable  being.  If  he  had  not 
the  power  to  believe,  he  could  not  be  condemned  for  unbelief. 
Jesus  says,  "He  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned."  There  must 
be  a  principle  of  justice  underlying  such  condemnation. 

Seed  is  sown  in  the  earth,  and  by  a  natural  process  are  developed 
the  bud,  the  blossom,  and  the  natural  fruit.  So  faith  is  sown  in 
the  soul,  and  by  nurture  and  cultivation  is  developed  the  spiritual 
fruit,  a  knowledge  of  the  truth. 

We  would  not  expect  to  get  a  full  grown  tree,  a  hundred 
years  old,  in  a  second  of  time;  neither  would  we  expect  a  full 
grown  man  without  a  natural  growth  from  infancy.  Though  the 
creation  of  Adam  and  the  birth  of  Jesus  may  be  involved  in  more 
or  less  mystery,  the  fact  is,  there  was  no  exception  in  their  cases. 
If  Adam  could  have  been  created  a  full  grown  man  with  all  his 
faculties  fully  developed,  with  a  knowledge  of  good  and  evil,  be- 
coming as  the  Gods,  without  having  gone  through  the  natural 
stages  of  development,  then  all  men  might  have  been  created  in 
the  same  way,  and  there  would  have  been  no  need  of  male  and 
female,  the  pains  of  maternity,  the  care  of  infancy,  our  schools 
and  all  our  institutions  of  learning.  Our  juvenile  blunders  and 
the  follies  incident  to  ignorance  and  inexperience  might  have 
been  dispensed  with.  This  theory  is  so  obviously  absurd  that  no 
sane  person  can  believe  it,  but  it  is  no  more  absurd  than  the  theory 
that  a  full  knowledge  of  the  truth  can  be  gained  without  obedience 
to  the  law  by  which  it  comes.  Those  who  ignore  the  principle  of 
faith,  rebel  against  the  inevitable,  put  themselves  out  of  harmony 
with  eternal  law,  become  a  law  to  themselves,  and  compass  their 
own  undoing.  The  wheels  of  time  cannot  veer,  nor  the  forces  of 
the  universe  side-track,  to  suit  the  vagaries  of  skepticism . 


In  regard  to  worship,  we  know  that  all  races  of  men  worship 


326  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

in  some  form.  Veneration  seems  to  be  inherent  in  man;  he  is  im- 
pelled by  nature  to  worship  some  object  that  he  conceives  to  be 
superior  to  himself.  This  is  a  divine  attribute,  and  when  exercised 
intelligently  in  the  worship  of  God  is  an  effectual  means  of  spiritual 
growth.  But  when  perverted  may  become  a  means  of  debasement. 
Every  good  thing  may,  by  perversion,  be  turned  to  evil.  Love^ 
though  divine  and  essentially  good,  when  turned  to  jealousy,  is  the 
basest  of  passions.  We  never  discard  a  good  principle,  because 
it  may  be  used  for  evil.  Many  people  ruin  themselves  and  others 
by  going  into  debt,  yet  most  of  the  world's  business  is  done  on 
credit.  Many  become  nervous  dyspeptics  by  over-indulgence ;  but 
we  don't  stop  eating  and  drinking  on  that  account.  Notwith- 
standing the  many  divorces,  infidelity,  and  abuse  of  the  marriage 
covenant,  men  and  women  continue  to  marry.  The  senses  through 
which  we  receive  the  most  exquisite  pleasure,  may  also  give  us  the 
most  intense  pain.  Divine  worship  is  indispensible  to  spiritual 
growth,  yet  in  its  perversion  it  has  caused  the  most  evil  the  world 
has  ever  known. 

One  very  important  mark  of  distinction  between  those  wha 
worship  God  "in  spirit  and  in  truth,"  and  those  who  worship  idols,, 
is  the  difference  in  their  attitude  towards  those  who  do  not  worship 
as  they  do.  It  is  the  will  of  God  that  all  men  be  free  to  use  their 
agency  without  constraint;  and  those  who  worship  him,  however 
careful  they  are  to  guard  their  own  freedom,  are  just  as  careful 
of  the  rights  of  those  who  do  not  worship  as  they  do.  And  no  true 
disciple  of  Christ  will  use  any  power  but  persuasion  and  kindness, 
to  induce  others  to  worship  as  he  does;  while  those  who  worship 
false  gods,  when  persuasion  fails,  will  use  force  to  compel  others 
to  do  as  they  do.  This  intolerance  has  brought  the  principle  of 
reverence  into  contempt,  till  many  believe  it  is  intrinsically  eviL 
It  is  true,  it  has  numbered  its  martyrs  by  thousands,  and  its  vic- 
tims in  battle  by  millions. 

In  the  light  of  history,  many  feel  alarm  at  the  prospect  of 
the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-day  Saints  becoming  a  power 
in  the  land,  lest  that  power  should  be  used  to  curtail  the  freedom 
and  bind  the  consciences  of  their  fellowmen.  Judging  the  future 
by  the  past,  there  seems  good  ground  for  such  fear;  it  seems  to  be 
the  nature  of  man,  when  he  has  power,  to  coerce  his  fellowmen. 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  FAITH  AND  WORSHIP.         327 

This  is  not  only  so  ecclesiastically,  but  also  in  political,  social,  in- 
dustrial, and  commercial  affairs.  As  the  outstanding  boy  is  pelted 
to  bring  him  into  the  ring,  so  the  man  is  boycotted  or  ostracised 
to  force  him  into  the  union  or  combine. 

But  as  far  as  the  Church  of  Christ  is  concerned, there  need  be 
no  feci,r,  for  it  is  founded  on  the  democratic  principle  of  common 
consent.  "We  claim  the  privilege  of  worshiping  Almighty  God 
according  to  the  dictates  of  our  conscience,  and  allow  all  men  the 
same  privilege,  let  them  worship  how,  where,  or  what  they  may." 
(Eleventh  Article  of  Faith.)  The  gospel  is  a  "perfect  law  of  liber- 
ty;"  it  is  a  fundamental  principle  in  God's  government,  and  any 
departure  from  it  would  destroy  the  Church. 

Satan,  knowing  the  power  of  this  principle,  has  invented  a 
thousand  devices  as  objects  of  worship  to  lead  men  away  from  God , 
insomuch  that  for  many  generations  the  whole  world  wandered 
after  the  beast,  and  worshiped  his  image.  The  first  of  the  ten  com- 
mandments given  to  Israel  through  Moses  was  to  call  them  from 
their  idols  to  the  worship  of  the  true  God.  One  object  of  the 
gospel,  as  restored  by  an  angel  from  heaven  in  the  last  days,  as 
recorded  in  the  14th  chapter  of  Revelation,  is  to  call  all  nations, 
kindreds,  tongues  and  people,  to  "Fear  God  and  worship  him  who 
made  heaven,  and  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the  fountains  of  water." 
In  this  principle,  Jesus  set  all  men  an  example.  When  Satan  offered 
him  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  if  he  would  fall  down  and  wor- 
ship him,  he  refused  the  offer,  saying,  "It  is  written,  thou  shalt 
worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him  only  shalt  thou  serve."  Jesus 
not  only  prayed  to  his  Father  himself,  but  taught  his  disciples  also 
to  pray,  saying, "seek  and  ye  shall  find,  ask  and  ye  shall  receive." 
"Pray  to  your  Father  in  secret,  and  he  will  reward  thee  openly." 
"Watch  and  pray,  lest  ye  enter  into  temptation."  If  it  were  nec- 
essary for  him  who  was  without  sin  to  constantly  pray  to  his 
Father  for  strength,  how  much  more  is  it  necessary  for  sinful  men 
to  pray ! 

There  are  many  examples  in  the  scriptures  of  blessings  re- 
ceived through  prayer;  and  in  this  dispensation,  the  blessings  that 
came  to  Joseph  Smith,  and  through  him  to  the  Church,  have 
come  in  answer  to  praver. 

The  saints  in  this  day  are  required  to  call  their  families  to- 


328  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

gether  morning  and  evening,  to  bow  in  prayer  and  praise  to  God; 
and  also  to  meet  on  the  Sabbath,  to  worship  God  in  songs  of  praise 
and  prayer,  to  partake  of  the  sacrament  in  remembrance  of  the 
atonement  of  Christ,  and  to  receive  instructions  in  doctrine,  in 
theory,  and  in  their  duty  to  God  and  each  other,  from  the  elders, 
as  they  are  inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  By  withdrawing  themselves 
from  the  caras  of  the  world,  and  humbling  themselves  before  God, 
their  souls  are  brought  into  harmony  with  the  divine  Spirit ;  they 
are  impressed  with  greater  love  to  God,  and  charity  for  each  other. 
The  Spirit  of  God  is  poured  down  upon  them ;  their  testimonies 
strengthened,  their  faith  increased;  the  sick  are  healed,  the  spirit- 
ual gifts  of  the  gospel  enjoyed.  They  separate  with  renewed  de- 
termination to  keep  themselves  unspotted  from  the  sins  of  the 
world.  The  results  are  love,  union,  peace  and  prosperity,  in  their 
homes  and  communities .  That  the  observance  of  these  principles 
is  necessary  is  shown  in  the  conditions  of  those  members  of  the 
Church  who  neglect  family  prayer,  and  fail  to  keep  the  Sabbath 
day  holy,  and  who  do  not  meet  in  public  to  worship  God,  and  re- 
ceive instruction.  They  become  indifferent,  neglect  other  duties, 
become  weak  in  the  faith,  and  drift  away  with  the  multitude  down 
the  broad  road  to  destruction. 

So  great  are  the  weaknesses  of  the  flesh,  so  many  the  tempta- 
tions of  Satan,  and  the  inducements  to  sin,  that,  in  order  to  prac- 
tice the  self-denial,  and  make  the  sacrifices  necessary  to  walk  in 
the  narrow  way  that  leads  to  eternal  life,  men  must  not  only  on 
Sunday,  but  every  day  in  the  week,  in  all  the  affairs  of  life,  lean 
upon  the  Lord,  and  seek  the  guidance  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  through 
the  exercise  of  faith  and  humble,  earnest  prayer: 

"Prayer  is  the  Christian's  vital  breath,  the  Christian's  native  air; 
His  watch-word  at  the  gates  of  death;  he  enters  heaven  with  prayer. 
No  prayer  is  mads  on  earth  alone:  the  Holy  Spirit  pleads, 
And  Jesus,  on  the  eternal  throne,  for  sinners  intercedes." 

Mancos,  Col. 


Photo  by  C.  R.  Savage. 

Wasatch  Mountains. — In  Cottonwood  Canyon. 


"A  restless  tributary  plunging  to  the  sunset  sea." 


WHAT  OF  THE  HOME-COMING? 

A  NARRATIVE   BASED  ON   REAL   LIFE. 
BY    D.  H.  FOWLER. 


The  Virginia  creepers  were  pushed  aside  by  a  shapely  feminine 
hand,  and  a  pair  of  hazel  eyes  peered  from  behind  their  thick  recesses. 
There  was  mingled  in  their  depths  a  look  of  expectation,  joy  and 
sadness.  Their  owner,  after  a  long,  eager  glance  down  the  paved 
walk,  sank  back  in  a  seat  hidden  from  view  by  the  trailing  creep- 
ers which  overhung  the  veranda  at  nearly  every  point.  She  sat  in 
deep  thought.  AH  day  she  had  gone  about  her  household  duties 
as  one  in  a  dream.  She  could  not  realize  that  tomorrow  she  must 
look  on  his  face  for  the  last  time — till  he  returned,  two  years  or 
more  hence,  bearing  sheaves  of  success  and  glory  that  come  from 
duty  well  done.  If  she  could  only  fall  into  a  deep  slumber,  and 
so  remain  till  time  should  drag  out  its  slow  cycles!  Still  she 
would  not  lay  a  straw  in  his  way.  He  had  been  called  to  go  forth 
in  the  face  of  a  frowning  world  to  represent  a  cause  for  which  his 
parents  and  hers  had  sacrificed  much.  She  felt,  also,  that  there 
was  glory  in  the  end  for  them  both,  if  she  remained  true  and  faith- 
ful to  him,  during  the  long  separation. 

She  was  roused  from  her  reverie  by  a  well-known  step  on  the 
pavement,  and  a  moment  later  confronted  by  a  broad-shouldered, 
manly  youth.  She  had  stepped  from  her  cover  to  greet  him, 
and  stood  in  the  glov:  of  the  setting  sun  whose  touch  like  that  of 
Midas  changed  to  gold  her  crown  of  gold-brown  hair.  It  revealed 
a  form  slightly  taller  than  the  medium  of  her  sex,  but  withal  so 
well  moulded  and  symmetrical  that  at  once  one  was  struck  with  its 
simple  beauty.     Her  face  was  lighted  by  the  delicate  crimson  on 


WHAT  OF  THE  HOME-COMING?  331 

her  cheeks,  and  her  lips  were  of  the  proverbial  rose-bud  type,  spe- 
cially designed  to  tempt  the  sterner  sex . 

She  gave  him  her  hand,  and  tried  to  hide  her  real  feelings  be- 
hind a  faint  smile. 

"How  late  you  are  tonight!  I  suppose  you  had  business  so 
much  more  important  than  this  that  you  were  justified  in  remain- 
ing away  as  long  as  possible?" 

"Thank  you,"  he  returned  with  a  sad  smile,  "I  have  received 
so  many  thrusts  of  late  that  my  heart  is  pretty  well  calloused  and 
can  receive  one  more  quite  gracefully,  I  hope."  And  he  took  the 
proifered  seat  by  her  side.  She  cast  a  smiling  glance  into  his  face 
which  portrayed  to  his  love-sharpened  eyes  more  than  she  had 
deigned  to  admit  before.  The  look  rewarded  him  for  all  his  past 
efforts  to  gain  her  affection. 

'  'You  are  still  inclined  to  take  my  observations  in  their  most 
serious  light,"  she  said  apologetically.  "You  must  learn  to  look 
on  the  sunny  side  of  life,  and  remember  you  are  going  to  scatter 
light  to  a  world  that  we  believe  has  less  than  we  have." 

"I  had  almost  forgotten  there  is  any  sun,  at  times,  during  the 
events  of  the  last  few  days;  especially  when  my  thoughts  turned 
to  this  bower.  But  you  are  right.  I  am  to  be  a  carrier  of  in- 
creased light  to  a  people  who  do  not  feel  its  need  on  the  activities 
and  researches  of  modern  life.  They  cannot  conceive  of  the  idea 
that  the  great  All-wise  would  deem  it  necessary,  in  this  professedly 
enlightened  day,  to  illuminate  men  with  the  heaven-light  that  comes 
only  from  His  divine  presence.  And  yet  I  have  a  feeling  of  joy 
and  satisfaction  in  my  heart  that  I  never  experienced  while  en- 
gaged in  the  activities  of  common  business  pursuits.  Tomorrow 
I  leave  behind  me  an  aged  father,  an  invalid  mother,  brothers  and 
sisters,  friends,  and  llife  associates,  chances  of  worldly  gain,  and 
last,  but  not  least,  your  own  dear  self."  Here  she  feigned  to  be 
re-arranging  the  folds  of  her  gown,  so  that  her  eyes  failed  to 
meet  his.  "God  willing,  I  shall  be  parted  from  them  at  least 
two  years,"  he  continued.  "During  that  time  I  shall  pay  my 
own  way  in  the  world,  as  hundreds  of  our  missionaries  have  done 
before  me,  and  give  my  time  and  energies  to  the  work  of  pro- 
claiming a  new  message  of  heaven-revealed  light  to  an  ungrate- 
ful world.      Few  will  believe  my  words;  many  will  revile,  scoff 


332  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

at,  and  falsify  me,  as  they  have  always  done  to  our  people, 
and  all  advocates  of  new  truth  ever  since  time  was.  Yet  in  the 
face  of  all,  I  feel  in  my  very  soul  that  if  I  betray  not  this 
trust,  and  execute  well  this  commission,  that  the  great  Rewarder 
of  all  who  answer  duty's  call,  will  prosper  me  beyond  my  fond- 
est hope." 

"Yet  it  seems  hard  to  spend  two  of  the  very  best  years  of 
your  life  isolated  from  your  friends.  But,  of  course,  I  would 
go  if  I  were  in  your  place, '^she  ventured. 

"I  have  but  one  regret,  and  that  is  leaving  you  behind.  0 
Marval,  I  tremble  to  think  what  changes  there  might  be  here  when  I 
return.  Yet,  I  cannot  ask  you  to  remain  true  to  me;  you  may 
meet  someone  with  whom  it  would  be  to  your  advantage  to  cast 
your  lot.  And  yet,  I  cannot  bear  the  thought .  It  pierces  my 
heart  like  a  point  of  steel  to  think  of  you  by  another's  side. 
Marval,  speak  to  me.  Don't  you  see  how  I  have  loved  you  since 
first  I  came  into  your  path?  Ah,  but  I  should  not  ask  it."  And 
he  struggled  to  master  his  feelings. 

Slowly  she  raised  her  head  and  met  the  gaze  of  ardent  love. 
Marval  Hall  clasped  her  hands  across  his  shoulders  and  the  glow  of 
her  face  lit  his  inmost  soul.  Their  eyes  met,  and  almost  simultaneous- 
ly the  golden  head  fell  on  the  clasped  hands,  and  the  supple  form 
trembled  convulsively. 

So,  rascally  Cupid  of  ancient  renown  bound  together  these  two 
hearts  which  had  fallen  prey  to  his  wily  archery. 

The  sharp  ring  of  the  telephone  brought  them  back  from  this 
reverie  to  cruel  earth.  She  raised  her  head  and  sank  back  in  the 
settee . 

The  answer  was  satisfactory — so  much  so  that  it  exceeded 
his  most  sanguine  hopes.  Still,  no  word  had  she  volunteered,  and 
he  longed  to  hear  some  expression  from  her  lips.  But  he  was 
cautious . 

"0  that  I  had  a  right  to  ask  you  to  wait.  But  the  sacrifice 
is  too  great.  I  cannot!  I  cannot!"  he  exclaimed,  and  impulsively 
clasped  her  slender  hands  in  his  strong  ones  and  clung  to  them  as  one 
clings  to  a  treasure  that  any  moment  may  be  torn  away  forever. 
Again  the  hazel  eyes  raised  to  his,  and  one  word  escaped  the  parted 
lips— "Why?" 


WHAT  OF  THE  HOME-COMLYGf  333 

Again  her  eyes  fell,  and  she  drew  back  as  though  maiden 
modesty  had  exceeded  her  bounds.  The  ardent  wooer  was  quick 
to  grasp  the  significance  of  the  single  monosyllable. 

A  kiss  was  his  impulsive  reply,  and  never  was  reply  more  elo- 
quent. They  sat  and  talked  of  future  bliss,  after  duty  should  have 
had  her  claim  upon  his  activities.  And  they  almost  forgot,  for  a 
time,  that  twenty-four  hours  would  see  him  with  his  back  turned 
on  their  dear  old  Utah  home. 

The  next  day  was  a  memorable  one  for  our  Elder.  In  the 
forenoon  he  attended  tD  some  miscellaneous  preparations  for  the 
journey,  and  checked  his  baggage.  Six-thirty  p.  m.  saw  the 
pair  at  the  railway  depot.  They  had  twenty  minutes  only  to  wait, 
yet  neither  had  aught  to  say,  except  that  at  times  half  meaning 
sentences  would  escape  from  the  lips  of  one  to  be  answered  by  the 
other  in  the  same  far-away  manner.  Soon  two  other  elders  ar- 
rived, and  Marval  attemi)ted  to  smile,  and  politely  recognized  them 
as  they  were  being  formally  presented. 

The  train  rolled  into  the  station  and  stopped.  The  elders 
boarded  it  and  chose  their  seats,  placed  on  them  their  small  grips, 
and  returned  to  step  their  feet  again  on  native  soil,  and  there 
greet  for  the  last  time  those  whom  they  held  near  and  dear.  One 
of  our  heroes  had  his  grey-haired  mother  on  whose  lips  to  press 
his  parting  caress,  and  from  whose  lips  to  receive  his  last  bene- 
diction: "God  bless  you,  my  son;  he  will,  if  you  do  your  duty." 
The  third  elder  was  from  Idaho,  and  had  passed  through  his  part- 
ing the  day  previous.  The  "ail-aboard"  of  the  conductor  rang 
out  on  the  air,  our  hero's  lips  met  Marval's  in  a  heartfelt  kiss,  and 
he  sprang  to  the  steps  of  the  car  and  watched  the  beautiful,  de- 
jected form  of  a  young  girl  walk  slowly  away,  as  one  in  a  dream. 
The  train  swung  round  a  curve,  and  she  was  lost  to  sight.  He 
had  turned  his  back  on  his  home,  and  something  within  him  seemed 
to  say,  "perhaps  forever!" 


■  Two  travel-stained  youths  stopped  in  front  of  a  large ,  cross- 
less  church.  It  was  the  third  day  since  their  parting  from  the 
stronghold  of  the  Saints.  The  June  sun  shone  through  the  smoke 
of  a  metropolitan  city.      Their  thoughts   had  been  somewhat  di- 


334  IMPR  0  YEMEN T  ERA . 

verted  from  their  loved  ones  left  behind,  by  the  ever-changing 
scenes  that  came  to  vie>v  along  the  way.  The  spectre  of  the  great, 
murky  cities  contrasted  greatly  with  the  clear  mountain  air  of  their 
b -loved  Zion.  One  of  their  number  had  dropped  out  of  the  com- 
pany, a  thousand  miles  behind,  to  make  his  way  to  another  field  of 
labor. 

So,  as  these  two  stood  at  last  at  the  headquarters  of  that 
particular  mission,  they  raised  their  eyes  to  the  stately  building 
and  read  the  inscription,  "Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-day 
Saints."  They  ambled  up  the  stairway  of  the  office  department, 
and  soon  faced  the  office  clerk.  They  were  informed  that  the  mis- 
sion president  was  out  of  the  city.  Our  Elder  asked  for  paper, 
and  sat  down  to  inform  her  of  his  safe  arrival,  and  to  enlarge  upon 
some  of  the  new  scenes  through  which  he  had  recently  passed, 
closing  with  a  few  tender  sentiments  that  young  hearts  delight  to 
exchange . 


Three  months  later,  and  in  a  northern  city.  A  group  of  peo- 
ple stand  huddled  together  on  the  principal  business  corner.  They 
seem  intently  listening  to  what  appears  to  be  a  recital  of  peculiar 
interest.  The  earnest  tones  of  the  speaker  float  out  on  the  eve- 
ning air. 

"It  is  a  message  of  the  greatest  importance  to  all  mankind, 
if  they  but  understood  it,"  he  was  saying.  "It  is  essentially  a 
message  of  truth,  and  mankind  have  never  looked  favorably  on 
that,  at  the  first.  Galileo  was  persecuted  when  he  declared  the 
earth  was  not  the  centre  of  the  universe,  but  was  one  of  a  family 
of  planets  which  revolved  around  the  sun.  Columbus  was  called  a 
fool  for  thinking  he  could  sail  around  it.  Even  the  Savior  of  the 
world  was  hounded  and  killed  because  his  message  did  not  agree 
with  the  accepted  dogmas  of  the  hypocritical  Pharisees ;  yet  his 
teachings  were  as  far  above  theirs  as  the  heavens  are  above  the 
earth.  The  poet,  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  in  his  estimable  poem  on 
'Truth,'  says: 

The  time  is  racked  with  birth  pangs ;  every  hour 
Brings  forth  some  gasping  truth,  and  truth,  new-born, 
Looks  a  misshapen  and  untimely  growth, 
The  terror  of  the  household  and  its  shame; 
A  monster  coiling  in  its  nurse's  lap, 


WHAT  OF  THE  HOME-COMING?  335 

That  some  would  strangle,  some  would  only  starve; 
But  still  it  breathes,  and  passed  from  hand  to  hand, 
And  suckled  at  a  hundred  half-clad  breasts, 
Comes  slowly  to  its  stature  and  its  form; 
Calms  the  rough  ridges  of  its  dragon  scales. 
Changes  to  shining  locks  its  snaky  hair, 
And  moves,  transfigured  into  angel-guise, 
Welcomed  by  all  that  cursed  its  hour  of  birth; 
And  folded  in  the  same  encircling  arms. 
That  cast  it  like  a  serpent  from  their  fold. 

"So  the  tidings  we  have  to  bear  to  the  world  are  not  in  accord 
with  the  accepted  Christian  dogmas  of  today.  But  does  that  make 
them  untrue?  We  bring  you  the  information  that  God  has  again 
<>pened  the  heavens  as  of  old,  and  made  known  his  will  to  his 
earth-children.  And  we  hear  the  old  cry  of  'fools/  'imposture,' 
'away  with  them.'  Churchmen  of  today  tell  us  that  there  is  no 
need  of  new  revelation,  but  is  there?  Paul  spoke  of  apostles  and 
prophets  to  remain  in  the  Church  'till  we  all  come  to  a  unity  of 
the  faith.'  Is  Christianity  at  present  coming  nearer  to  that  ideal 
condition,  or  receding  from  it?  Are  there  more  creeds  arising, 
and  all  differing  from  one  another,  or  are  they  growing  fewer?  I 
know  of  no  time  in  the  history  of  the  world  when  light  from 
heaven  was  more  needed  to  illume  the  problems  that  confront  the 
■Christian  world  than  today.  Besides  its  being  logical,  it  is  scrip- 
tural. 'Surely  the  Lord  God  will  do  nothing  but  he  revealeth  his 
secrets  unto  his  servants,  the  prophets,'  says  Amos.  Also  John, 
the  Divine,  saw  that  a  heavenly  messenger  should  come  to  earth  in 
the  last  days. 

"Now  what  are  the  fruits  of  the  teachings  of  Latter-day 
Saints?  In  short,  they  are  these:  they  adhere  to  the  doctrines  of 
prophets,  Christ  and  the  apostles;  they  stand  in  the  foremost 
ranks  of  education ;  they  maintain  a  high  standard  of  morality  in 
their  everyday  life,  notwithstanding  the  belief  some  of  you  may  have 
to  the  contrary;  they  are  spiritually-minded.  They  are  honest; 
and  the  advanced  industrial  conditions  that  prevail  among  them 
may  well  be  held  up  as  a  standard  to  the  world.  These  state- 
ments are  borne  out  by  statistics  and  actual  facts.  The  man  and 
woman  who  are  disposed  to  look  down  on  what  they  please  to  term 
^Mormonism,'  do  not  know  the  truth  about  it.      Because  one  does 


336  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

not  understand  an  institution  is  no  reason  why  one  should  judge  it. 
'Judge  not,'  said  the  Master,  'lest  ye  be  judged.'  My  people  stand 
for  all  that  is  elevating  and  uplifting,  and  the  time  will  come  that 
the  world  will  know  it." 

For  more  than  an  hour,  he  found  eager  listeners  to  the  mes- 
sage he  had  to  give;  and  after  closing,  men  came  and  gave  him 
the  welcome  hand.  They  seemed  deeply  impressed  by  the  earnest- 
ness of  his  manner,  and  the  evident  purity  of  his  mind. 

During  his  advent  in  their  city,  many  people  believed  his 
words,  and  could  see  in  him  uprightness  and  cleanness  of  life;  but 
few  seemed  disposed  to  ally  themselves  with  his  creed— it  was 
unpopular. 

Time  rolled  on.  Summer  had  again  conquered  the  icy  chill  of 
the  frost  giants.  The  Elder  and  Marval  Hall  had  kept  up  a  con- 
tinual correspondence.  She  had  been  true  and  faithful.  ,  As  for 
him,  his  heart  oft  dwelt  on  the  glad  meeting  when  his  duty  abroad 
should  be  finished  and  he  be  again  returned  to  the  open 
arms  of  his  loved  ones.  He  felt  that  each  day  she  was  dearer 
than  the  last.  And  what  would  she  say  and  how  would  she  re- 
ceive him  as  he  came  through  the  old  gate,  and  up  to  the  dear  old 
vine-covered  bower?  It  would  not  be  long  now  till  these  dreams 
should  be  realized,  he  tried  to  tell  himself.  The  time  thus  far 
had  seemed  to  fly  on  the  wings  of  the  wind,  for  he  found  an 
abundance  of  activities  to  employ  his  time,  and  withal  he  felt  a 
quiet  joy  that  comes  to  men  when  they  know  their  acts  merit  the 
approbation  of  the  Perfect  One. 

But  on  this  particular  summer  day,  as  he  made  his  way 
with  measured  tread  toward  his  plainly  furnished  rooms,  his  heart 
was  singularly  sad  and  his  manner  dejected.  He  could  not  under- 
stand why.  He  thought  over  the  experiences  of  his  trip  to  the 
outlying  country  towns,  from  which  he  was  just  returning.  He 
had  been  gone  two  weeks,  during  which  time  he  had  traveled 
"without  purse  or  scrip"  depending  on  the  arm  of  the  Lord  to 
provide  him  the  necessaries  of  life,  as  in  old  time.  He  had  found 
friends  who  had  readily  provided  for  all  his  wants,  as  he  went  from 
village  to  village,  crying  repentance  to  what  he  considered  to  be  a 
generation  steeped  in  false  religious  tradition,  error,  and  only  too 
often  the  sins  incident  to  man's  fallen  nature.      He  left    booklets 


WHAT  OF  THE  HOME-COMING? 


337 


in  his  wake  which  would  inform  the  reader  of  some  of  the  princi- 
ples of  the  restored  gospel,  and  the  will  of  the  Father  concerning 
them.  He  felt  that  his  expedition  had  been  entirely  successful  from 
his  standpoint,  namely:  to  warn  the  children  of  men.  So,  as  he 
found  himself  and  companion  drawing  near  their  humble  abode,  he 
could  not  fcithom  this  depression  of  spirit,  which  he  had  heard 
often  came  to  men  as  a  precursor  of  some  impending  evil.  His 
fellow  wayfarer  noted  his  despondent  air,  and  tried  to  draw  his 
mind  from  what  he  guessed  to  be  the  subject  of  his  thoughts. 
"Cheer  up,  it  will  be  all  right  with  her,  if  perchance  she  is  the  one 
whom  the  All-wise  has  designed  to  be  your  helpmeet." 

"Brother  S ,"  he  replied,  evading  the  subject,  "I  can- 
not understand  my  mood  this  morning,  myself;  I  think  I  shall  rest 

today.    Let  us  borrow  Brother? 's  skiff  and  sink  our  cares 

in  yonder  river. 


(to  be  concluded  in  next  number.) 


Independence ,  Mo. 


Photo  by  C.  R.  Savage. 

Wasatch  Mountains — Scene  in  Ogden  Canyon. 


THOUGHTS  OF  A  FARMER. 

BY  DR.   JOSEPH  M.  TANNER. 


v.— THE  TEST  OF  GOODNESS  AND  VALUE,  IN  HORSES 

AND  MEN. 

Last  year  I  tried  the  experiment  of  Buying  a  number  of  four- 
year-old  colts,  as  it  was  a  year  when  the  work  would  not  be  so 
taxing  upon  them;  with  the  thought  that  at  five  they  would  be  in 
prime  condition  for  service.  The  quality  of  these  colts  was  as 
diversified  as  the  characters  often  found  among  men.  Some  of 
them  were  easy  to  break.  They  were  good  from  the  start.  Others 
were  stubborn  and  would  refuse  to  move.  One  lay  down  for  three 
days  and  would  not  budge,  and  another  was  mean  to  strike,  and  so 
nervous  that  it  was  really  dangerous  at  times  to  go  near  him. 
Within  a  month  or  six  weeks  these  extremities  began  to  pass  away, 
and  the  colts  settled  down  to  a  measurably  steady  gait.  Some  of 
them,  however,  were  persistent  in  their  determinations  not  to 
yield.  They  are  all  now  what  may  be  called  steady  work  horses, 
but  they  still  have  their  differences. 

Some  of  the  horses,  so  easily  managed  in  the  beginning,  move 
about  as  if  they  had  been  worked  for  forty  years,  and  were  expect- 
ing every  day  to  be  pensioned  off.  Goodness  and  laziness  are  syn- 
onymous in  them.  Some  of  the  horses  that  gave  me  unusual 
trouble,  and  were  difficult  to  manage  at  the  outset,  have  carried 
with  them  into  the  harness  an  activity  and  willingness  that  make 
them  ideal  work  teams. 

When  I  look  at  these  horses  and  think  of  how  they  started 
out,  and  how  they  are  working  now,  I  wonder  if  some  such  char- 
acteristics are  not  peculiar  to  men.      You  know  you  can  harness 


THOUGHTS  OF  A  FARMER.  339 

some  men  to  anything,  at  any  time.  They  are  always  willing  to  be 
harnessed,  even  if  they  are  lazy,  and  don't  do  much  work.  Some 
men  are  obstinate,  self-willed,  restless  under  restraint,  in  the  be- 
ginning of  their  manhood,  but  when  once  converted  and  broken  to 
the  higher  duties  of  life  they  become  ideal  workers.  I  imagine 
that  sometin-es  we  are  likely  to  confound  lethargy  with  goodness. 
We  think  that  men,  like  horses,  who  never  kick  up  their  heels  are 
really  good. 

After  all,  the  real  test  of  goodness  is  to  be  found  in  service; 
and  men  who  are  always  doing  something,  who  set  in  motion  every- 
thing they  touch,  are  the  positive  characters  in  life,  whose  real 
service  is  likely  to  be  most  beneficial.  Men  that  are  always  set- 
ting things  in  motion,  it  is  true,  may  now  and  then  give  the  wrong 
direction  to  some  of  their  energies;  they  may  hurt  somebody;  but 
after  all,  if  we  find  a  preponderance  of  good  in  them,  and  the 
whole  tendency  of  their  lives  is  towards  that  which  is  better  and 
higher,  shall  we  not  ascribe  something  of  goodness  to  them?  It  is 
very  easy  to  imagine  a  man  against  whom  nothing  in  particular  can 
be  said.  He  never  started  a  rock  down  hill,  nor  one  up  hill,  for 
that  matter.  He  does  not  move  things,  he  is  simply  moved.  He 
is  easily  guided,  stops  when  he  is  told  to,  and  frequently  stops 
when  he  is  not  told  to.  In  short,  he  has  no  working  energy  in 
his  life. 

When  I  was  a  boy,  my  neighbor,  a  man  of  mature  years,  used 
to  tell  the  following  little  anecdote  of  one  of  his  boyhood  experi- 
ences: "I  was  sent  out,"  said  he,  "one  morning  to  shuck  corn, 
and  instead  of  doing  as  I  was  told,  I  ran  off  to  play.  At  night, 
as  I  approached  my  home,  my  father  met  me  at  the  gate  with  a 
willow.  I  knew  what  to  expect,  I  had  seen  him  before  in  the  same 
attitude.  I  began  to  plead.  I  said,  'Father  I  hain't  done  nothin'.' 
'That  is  just  what  I  am  going  to  whip  you  for.'  " 

That  boy's  idea  of  wrong  was  something  positive,  a  direct  in- 
jury which  he  might  have  done  to  others.  It  sometimes  happens 
that  people  fail  to  compare  what  they  have  done  with  what  they 
might  have  done,  and  the  negative  quality  of  wrong  doing  is  not 
very  apparent  to  them. 

I  can  very  easily  imagine  that  some  of  my  horses  might  have 
been  made  vicious  for  life,  or  have  been  made  balky,  through  im- 


340  IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

proper  handling.  In  such  cases  we  attribute  their  condition  to  the 
folly  or  ignorance  of  the  man  who  breaks  them.  It  is  true,  there 
may  be  a  natural  element  of  balkiness  or  viciousness;  but  as  a  rule 
we  ascribe  their  bad  conditions  to  improper  training.  If  you  have 
noticed,  a  balky  horse  or  a  vicious  horse  has  a  tremendous  amount 
of  nerve  energy  and  great  will  power.  When  they  can  be  induced 
to  go  and  take  the  right  direction,  they  are  capable  of  an  enormous 
amount  of  service. 

How  often  we  meet  in  life  people  whom  we  esteem  unfortun- 
ate because  they  are  doing  the  wrong  thing;  and  when  they  try  to 
do  the  right  thing,  they  do  it  in  the  wrong  way!  We  can  see  in 
them  high  qualities  misdirected.  They  may  be  cured  in  this  life; 
they  may  not  be;  but  this  life  is  not  the  end,  and  if  this  life  is  not 
the  end,  there  is  hope  beyond,  and  there  must  be  opportunities 
beyond.  There  are,  then,  two  things  that  we  must  look  at  in  a 
man:  first,  the  existence  of  superior  qualities;  second,  the  use  to 
which  he  is  putting  his  talents.  If  a  man  has  no  talents,  and 
therefore  few  or  no  temptations, we  may  say  that  he  is  doing  noth- 
ing bad.  So  far  so  good.  If  we  see  a  man  stumbling,  sometimes 
falling,  but  always  trying  to  keep  on  his  feet,  we  know  that  in  him 
there  is  an  inherent  power  of  action,  a  capacity  for  doing  things. 
Some  day,  in  time  or  eternity,  he  may  overcome  besetting  tempta- 
tions and  turn  all  his  energies  to  good  account. 

He  may  enter  the  service  of  the  Lord  at  the  eleventh  hour 
and  get  his  reward  with  those  who  have  been  toiling  all  the  day 
long.  I  have  known  a  horse  that  required  two  months  of  a  season 
to  break  him  to  the  harness,  and  yet  in  the  remaining  months  did 
more  actual  service  than  the  horse  of  easy  going  propensities  at 
the  outset  would  do  in  a  whole  season's  work.  It  is  true  that  if 
horses  of  superabundant  energy  would  only  submit  in  the  beginning, 
they  would  be  much  more  valuable ;  but  superabundance  of  energy 
is  very  frequently  incompatible  with  the  spirit  of  submission.  How 
hard  it  is,  then,  at  the  outset  of  one's  career,  to  tell  how  his 
energies  are  likely  to  serve  him,  unless,  indeed,  he  has  no  energy 
at  all!  However,  right  or  wrong,  and  from  the  standpoint  of  a 
purely  earthly  career,  we  are  compelled  to  believe  that  the  man 
whose  energies,  however  great,  carry  him  in  the  wrong  direction, 
and  to  the  injury  of  others,  is  really,  after  all,  more  undesirable 


THOUGHTS  OF  A  FARMER.  341 

than  the  man  who  has  less  energy  and  is  so  lazy  that  he  may  be 
guided  without  effort,  and  whose  services  to  his  fellowmen  are 
really  very  small.  What  puzzling  things  the  conditions  of  human 
existence  are  after  all.  In  the  life  of  Jesus, we  are  often  impressed 
by  the  good  things  he  found  in  certain  classes,  that  were  dis- 
carded by  the  society  of  those  times. 
Albeita.  Canada. 


THE  ANSWER  TO   DEATH. 
{For  the  Improvement  Era.) 


The  rain  drippeth  down  through  the  night's  heavy  gloom, 
While  we  watch  with  the  dead  in  the  Jim-lighted  room. 
And  why  should  we  whisper, — and  why  should  we  yearn 
For  the  mother  whose  child  can  never  return? 

0  passionate  life,  and  0  sorrow-hushed  death, 

Whence  cometh  the  stillness?    Whence  goeth  the  breath? 

Is't  all  a  foul  riddle  which  no  one  may  read? 

Say,  what  is  life's  dogma!    And  what  is  death's  creed? 

Death  fastens  'ibout  us  his  mystical  coil, 

We  laugh  at  his  warning,  but  soon  we  recoil. 

He  fixes  the  eye  on  the  one  we  love  most. 

What  avail  is  our  pleading,  our  prayers,  or  our  boast? 

Like  wind.  Death  will  flee  where  he  listeth  to  flee. 
He  laughs  at  our  hopes;  and  they  fill  him  with  glee. 
He  greets  you  today,  and  may  seize  me  tomorrow — 
Why  gird  at  his  presence,  or  shrink  from  his  sorrow? 

0  life,  dost  thou  hold  a  certain  hereafter? 

If  so,  we  might  shame  Death  with  penitent  laughter. 

Who  knows  if  there  will  be  an  eternal  Me? 

0  read  me  the  riddle,  0  give  me  the  key! 


A  voice  from  the  silence,  a  song  from  the  tomb, 
Reveals  the   ost  message  and  pierceth  the  gloom: 
From  the  dead  rose  the  Savior  on  glorified  wing; — 
Where  is  the  grave's  victory,  and  where  is  Death's  sting? 
Portland,  Oregon.  Harvey  H.  Gatbs. 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIONARY. 


>>     iir 


BY  NEPHI  ANDERSON,  AUTHOR  OF      ADDED  UPON,"      THE  CASTLE 
BUILDER,"    ETC. 


V. 
THE  GREEN  LANES  OF  ENGLAND. 

England  is  one  great,  beautiful  garden,  with  a  goodly  number 
of  big,  black,  ugly  spots  in  it.  The  spots  are  the  towns,  begrimed 
with  the  dirt  and  smoke  of  mines,  mills,  and  traffic.  As  the  parks 
in  the  cities  are  beauty  spots  in  a  wilderness  of  ugliness,  so  the 
towns,  as  a  rule,  are  unsightly  blotches  on  the  pleasant  face  of 
the  land.  In  England,  one  may  understand  the  aptness  of  the  say- 
ing that,  "God  made  the  country  and  man  made  the  town."  All 
this  is  especially  true  of  northern  and  middle  England,  in  the  region, 
of  the  mines  and  mills. 

A  large  number  of  English  people  seldom  enjoy  the  beautiful 
country  they  live  in.  To  the  workers  in  the  big  cities,  life  is  a 
daily  grind,  amid  a  world  of  blackened  brick  and  stone;  and  so  it 
is  no  wonder  that  these  workers,  whenever  opportunity  affords, 
get  away  from  the  towns  and  make  excursions  into  the  country,, 
to  enjoy  for  a  day  the  green  fields  and  blue  sky. 

Elder  Willard  Dean  and  Sister  Elsa  Fernley  were  talking  about 
this  very  subject  that  afternoon,  as  they  were  walking  side  by  side 
on  the  footpath  which  extended  from  highway  to  highway  across  the 
fields.  The  Stonedale  Sunday  school  was  having  its  annual  picnic 
outing  that  afternoon.  Nearly  all  the  Saints  were  out,  and  a  number 
of  elders  from  nearby  branches  were  in  attendance .  The  day  was 
beautiful.  The  thin,  white  clouds  which  floated  across  a  sky  of 
blue  were  not  storm  clouds.      Yes;  the  sky  can  become  blue  in. 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIONARY.  343 

England,  although  some  people  who  are  more  observant  of  the 
dreary  than  they  are  of  the  cheerful,  tell  us  differently.  The  air, 
laden  with  field-gathered  aroma,  was  soft  and  mild. 

The  gathering  was  to  be  at  the  Springs,  about  a  mile  from 
Stonedale,  reached  by  a  walk  over  hill  and  dale.  As  the  Saints 
and  their  friends  could  not  all  go  at  one  time,  they  went  in  small 
parties.  Willard  walked  out  with  a  group  in  the  middle  of  the 
afternoon,  among  which  were  Sister  Fernley,  Elsa  and  Bessie. 
Willard  and  Elsa  brought  up  the  rear,  Willard  v/ith  a  big  lunch 
basket  and  Elsa  swinging  a  pretty  sunshade.  Their  conversation 
had  taken  quite  a  serious  turn,  and  that  was  the  reason,  no  doubt, 
why  the  rest  of  the  party  went  on  ahead  and  left  them  together. 

"You  know,"  Willard  was  saying,  "I  had  an  idea  that  Eng- 
land was  a  dull,  dreary  land,  where  it  rained  practically  all  the 
time." 

"How  did  you  get  such  an  idea?"  she  asked. 

"Well,  I  don't  know  exactly;  but  many  people  who  have  been 
here  have  given  us  that  impression.  I  think,  however,  I  have  dis- 
covered one  reason  why  travelers  get  such  misconceptions  of  your 
country.  It  is  this:  Many  of  them  are  whisked  across  the  coun- 
try by  your  fast  trains,  ofttimes  by  night.  The  beginnings  and 
endings  of  the  journey  are  in  the  trafiic  section  of  some  big  city. 
Perhaps  there  is  a  fog,  or  it  is  raining,  and  then  the  weary  traveler 
looks  around  on  the  dreary  scene  and  says,  'And  this  is  England?' 
Could  he  get  out  into  the  country  for  a  few  weeks  in  the  summer, 
and  walk  through  England's  green  fields  and  lanes,  he  would  form 
quite  a  different  opinion." 

"And  so  you  think  we  have  a  beautiful  country?"  asked  Elsa, 
as  she  changed  her  parasol  to  the  other  hand.  This  change  gave 
her  no  shade,  but  it  permitted  her  to  get  a  better  look  at  her  com- 
panion. 

"Yes;  your  country  is  a  continual  delight  to  me.  You  see  it 
is  so  different  from  ours  at  home." 

"In  what  way  is  it  so  different?  Tell  me  about  it,"  she 
urged . 

"Well,  you  must  remember  that  we  live  in  what  is  called 
America's  arid  region,  which  at  one  time  was  considered  a  vast, 
worthless  area.     Sometimes  in  the  summer  it  does  not  rain  for  two 


344  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

months.  You  can  perhaps  imagine  what  the  country  looks  like  at 
the  end  of  that  time.  Outside  of  the  irrigated  districts,  every- 
thing is  brown  or  bare.  The  hot  sun  has  baked  the  whole  land. 
The  mountains,  which  were  grass-covered  in  the  spring,  become 
dry  and  barren.  Towards  autumn,  the  fields  become  yellow. 
When  the  grain  is  cut,  the  brown  stubble  remains.  Dust  gathers 
on  trees,  fences  and  roadsides.  Then  comes  the  winter,  and  the 
snow  covers  the  hills.  Sometimes  it  lies  in  the  valleys  for  weeks  at 
a  time.  Then  it  is  beautiful.  You  cannot  think  how  grand  it  is, 
especially  at  night.  Then  the  air  is  keenly  sharp.  The  sky  is  an 
intensely  blue  vault,  without  a  cloud,  and  studded  with  countless 
stars  of  diamond  brilliancy.  The  earth  is  pure  white.  Add  to 
this  scene  the  merry  jingle  of  sleigh  bells ,  and  the  shouts  of  the 
happy  young  people — oh  my!" 

Elsa  was  interested.  She  had  started  him  to  talking,  which 
was  not  a  very  easy  thing  to  do,  she  had  learned  before  this. 

"So  you  see,  we  have  many  kinds  of  weather  in  Utah,  and 
the  changes  are  marked.  Here  in  England  there  is  more  of  a  uni- 
formity. You  have  green  fields  the  year  round.  True,  there  is 
much  rain;  but  I  like  rain,  and  besides,  rain  settles  the  dust, 
washes  the  trees,  and  decorates  every  nook  and  corner  where  there 
is  soil  with  flowers  and  grass.  I  think  you  English  people  don't 
fully  appreciate  your  climate.  When  the  weather  becomes  com- 
fortably warm,  you  call  it  'awfully  hot,'  and  when  it  is  otherwise, 
it  is  'dreadfully  naa-sty' — but  I'm  doing  all  the  talking;  I  want  to 
hear  you  talk  about  England . ' ' 

The  girl  laughed.  Her  cheeks  were  rosy-red;  and  her  eyes 
beamed. 

"I'm  glad  you  like  England,"  she  said.  "Some  of  the  elders 
can  see  nothing  good  here.  I  heard  one  elder  say  that  he  would 
rather  see  the  stones  and  dust  in  the  streets  of  his  home  town  than 
all  the  green  lanes  in  England." 

"He  was  foolish,"  said  he. 

"No;  he  was  simply  homesick,"  she  corrected.  "Besides, 
he  had  left  behind  someone  very  dear  to  him." 

"Yes;  parents,  brothers  and  sisters." 

"Elder  Dean,  don't  play  stupid.  Doesn't  every  young  elder 
have  a  sweetheart  at  home?" 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIONARY. 


345 


"Not  everyone — I  know  one  who  hasn't." 

"Oh,  they  all  say  that." 

"I  never  had  a  sweetheart  in  my  life." 

He  said  it  quite  soberly,  and  she  made  no  reply;  but  she 
tilted  the  sunshade  so  that  he  could  not  see  her  face  for  a  moment. 
Bessie  had  lingered,  but  now  came  up  and  offered  to  carry  the 


^^^^^^^^^^^BK) 

, 

^H^^^ft 

?■. 

^^^^^^K 

B^HH^IHBif''  !tl^B 

« 1, 

Wm 

^b^^^^Kui^H^^H  teii  '^^^^K 

9| 

^'T  ^ 

PdH 

H 

"The  stately  homes  of  England" — Hawarden  Castle,  the  home  of  Gladstone. 

basket  for  a  time.  He  would  not  hear  of  it.  The  path  led  into  a 
highway  again.  On  one  side  was  a  stone  wall,  old  and  moss- 
covered.  On  the  other  side  was  a  holly  hedge,  its  bright  green 
leaves  shining  in  the  sun.  The  trees  on  each  side  ofttimes  met  over- 
head. The  picnicers  passed  beautiful  country  villas.  How  cool 
and  restful  they  were,  covered  with  vines,  shaded  with  trees,  and 
surrounded  with  grass  and  flowers! 

'  'The  stately  homes  of  England — 

How  beautiful  they  stand, 
Amid  their  tall  ancestral  trees, 

O'er  all  the  pleasant  land," 


repeated  Elsa. 


346 


IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 


They  passed  a  typical  English  country  village,  and  then  fol- 
lowed a  road  which  led  through  high  banks  of  shrubbery.  A  stone 


"They  passed  a  typical  English  country  village." 

wall  was  scaled  by  the  aid  of  a  stile,  near  the  borders  of  a  small 
lake.  Near  the  stile,  a  young  couple  was  seated  on  the  grass,  in- 
tent upon  a  book.     Bessie  soon  joined  her  mother  again. 


"A  road  which  led  through  high  banks  of  shrubbery." 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIONARY. 


347 


"When  I  look  over  your  country,"  said  Willard,  "I  no  longer 
wonder  why  the  ancient  Danes  wanted  it,  or  why  men  have  fought  for 
its  possession  for  a  thousand  years  past; — by  the  way,  I  have  been 


"A  young  couple  was  seated  upon  the  grass,  intent  upon  a  book." 


reading  the  little  book  you  loaned  me.  I  have  known  for  years  of 
Ruskin's  Sesame  and  Lilies,  but  have  not  read  it  before.  I  brought 
the  book  with  me." 

"How  do  you  like  it?" 

''It  is  full  of  beautiful  thoughts.  Here,  for  instance,  is  a 
passage  from  his  'Of  Queens'  Gardens'  which  came  to  my  mind 
when  we  were  talking  of  the  contrasts  between  your  city  and  coun- 
try life. 

They  paused  on  the  last  stile  long  enough  for  him  to  take  his- 


348  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

book  from  his  pocket,  find  the  passage  and  read  it.  "Ruskin  here 
speaks  of  the  need  of  a  little  'wild  and  fair  nature'  for  the  chil- 
dren to  enjoy,"  said  Williard,  "and  then  he  continues,  speaking  to 
the  English  people: 'Suppose  you  had  each,  at  the  back  of  your 
houses,  a  garden  large  enough  for  your  children  to  play  in,  with 
just  as  much  lawn  as  would  give  them  room  to  run — no  more, — 
and  that  you  could  not  change  your  abode;  but  that,  if  you  chose, 
you  could  double  your  income,  or  quadruple  it,  by  digging  a  coal 
shaft  in  the  middle  of  the  lawn,  and  turning  the  flower-beds  into 
heaps  of  coal.  Would  you  do  it?  I  hope  not.  I  can  tell  you, 
you  would  be  wrong  if  you  did,  though  it  gave  you  an  income  of 
sixty-fold  instead  of  four-fold. 

"  'Yet  this  is  what  you  are  doing  with  all  England.  The  whole 
country  is  but  a  little  garden,  not  more  than  enough  for  your  chil- 
dren to  run  on  the  lawns  of,  if  you  would  let  them  all  run  there. 
And  this  little  garden  you  will  turn  into  furnace  ground,  and  fill 
with  heaps  of  cinders,  if  you  can;  and  those  children  of  yours,  not 
you,  will  suffer  for  it.'  I  put  a  mark  by  that  passage  in  your 
book ,' '  said  Willard .     "I  was  tempted  to  mark  many  others . ' ' 

The  Springs  were  now  reached.  A  number  of  people  had  al- 
ready arrived,  and  the  games  were  set  going.  Then  they  ate  their 
lunch,  spread  on  the  grass  by  the  hillside.  The  afternoon  con- 
tinued warm.  More  people  arrived  later,  and  towards  evening 
there  were  quite  a  number  present. 

After  a  heated  game  of  ball,  Willard  and  Elsa  found  them- 
selves seated  on  the  hillside  overlooking  the  pleasure  grounds. 
That  they  were  quite  alone,  was  not  Willard's  contriving.  When 
he  had  reclined  in  the  grass  and  fanned  his  warm  face  with  Elsa's 
sailor  hat  for  a  few  moments,  the  fact  that  they  were  alone  came 
to  him.  Perhaps  they  had  been  too  much  alone.  He  did  not  want 
to  do  anything  that  would  cause  talk  among  the  Saints;  but  they 
were  in  full  view  of  the  whole  pleasure  party,  so  he  could  be  doing 
no  indiscreet  act  in  simply  sitting  there. 

The  view  from  the  hill  was  an  interesting  one.  Away  to  the 
right  stretched  the  big,  black,  smoky  city,  and  in  that  direction  a 
forest  of  chimneys  reached  into  the  air.  In  front,  the  valley 
opened  out.      The  town  had  extended  a  long  arm  into  the  valley, 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIOXARY.  849 

and  there  were  a  number  of  mills  here,  too.  Beyond  the  valley 
were  the  hills,  dotted  with  homes,  and  checkered  with  fields,  bor- 
dered by  stone  walls.  Woods  extended  nearly  the  whole  length  of 
the  hill-top,  pierced  here  and  there  by  a  church  spire.  Out  beyond 
the  houses,  down  in  the  valley  to  the  left,  could  bo  seen  a  small 
stream,  while  a  canal  threaded  its  way  alongside.  A  number  of 
boats  moved  slowly  along  its  shining  surface,  drawn  by  a  horse  on 
the  path. 

Willard  Dean  and  Elsa  Fernley  sat  for  some  time  looking  at 
the  scene  before  them. 

''It's  your  turn  to  talk,"  said  he. 

"Shall  I  repeat  what  Shakespeare  says  of  England?" 

"Yes;  do." 

"This  is  what  he  says:     It  is  found  in  Richard  II: 

"  'This  royal  throne  of  kings,  this  sceptered  isle, 

This  earth  of  majesty,  this  seat  of  Mars, 

This  other  Eden,  demi-paradise, 

This  fortress  built  by  Nature  for  herself 

Against  infection  and  the  hand  of  war, 

This  happy  breed  of  men,  this  little  world, 

This  precious  stone  set  in  the  silver  sea. 

Which  serves  it  in  the  office  of  a  wall 

Or  as  a  moat  defensive  to  a  house, 

Against  the  envy  of  less  happier  lands, 

This  blessed  plat,  this  earth,  this  realm,  this  England.'  " 

"Shakespeare  sums  it  up  pretty  well,"  replied  he.  "Every 
line  counts." 

Then  Elsa  talked,  and  the  young  man  listened;  and  as  she 
talked  she  grew  confidential.  She  told  him  of  her  early  girlhood 
days,  and  the  trials  which  she  had  endured  even  then. 

"It  seemed  to  me  that  I  was  different  from  the  other  girls," 
she  said.  "Perhaps  I  was  more  serious,  for  my  set  was  a  flighty 
lot — all  the  talk  was  of  beaus  and  the  like.  I  remember  how  lone- 
some I  used  to  feel,  even  when  there  was  no  discemable  reason  for 
it.  I  have  never  had  to  work  in  the  mills.  After  school  I  would 
often  ramble  all  alone  out  in  the  fields  and  woods,  and  many  a  time 
have  I  been  out  here  to  the  Springs.      I  used  to  take  a  copy  of 


350 


IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 


Wordsworth  with  me  and  read  his  beautiful  descriptions  of  nature 
while  in  the  midst  of  it.    Truly,  also, 

"  *I  wandered  lonely  as  a  cloud 

That  floats  on  high  o'er  vales  and  hills.' — 

Wordsworth,  you  know,  lived  in  England's  beautiful  lake  region, 


"England's  beautiful  lake  region" — Lake  Windermere. 

and  the  beauty  of  the  country  has  entered  into  his  poems — I  think 
now  that  those  early  years  was  a  preparation  for  what  was  coming, 
when  I  was  to  hear  the  gospel." 

They  both  sat  on  the  grass,  he  a  little  above  her.  While  she 
talked,  she  looked  out  over  the  children  playing  below  them,  and 
he  looked  at  her.  He  couldn't  help  it,  because,  was  she  not  directly 
in  his  line  of  vision?  The  breeze  blew  her  hair  about  her  face — it 
had  become  somewhat  ruffled  by  her  romping  play  in  the  ball  game 
— and  as  she  tried  to  tuck  it  into  orderly  place,  she  smiled  up  into 
the  face  above  her. 

There  was  to  be  no  love  making!  Willard  knew  it,  and  often 
he  repeated  it  to  himself.  He  thought  he  was  safe,  but  again 
there  came  to  him,  as  he  looked  into  those  laughing  eyes  for  just 


ROMANCE  OF  A  MISSIONARY 


351 


a  moment,  something  inexpressibly  sweet  and  yet  akin  to  fear.  No 
one  had  ever  looked  at  him  like  that  before.  No  one  had  ever  con- 
fided to  him  as  this  girl  had  the  very  secrets  of  her  heart.  No  one 
had  ever  spoken  so  softly  and  sweetly.  No  one  had  ever  trusted 
him  as  she  did;— and  in  it  all  there  was  danger  to  the  heart  of  the 
susceptible,  inexperienced  boy  who  ofttimes  was  heart-hungry 
himself. 


M^ 

"^^^^^^^^^^^^^^1 

i^^^B 

^^^^^Kg^cx:l-_^.^^^^^^^^^& 

^^^^^^1 

^^■•^JP 

^^^^^ 

"^^^^ 

*■  ^i^* 

||M||^^|i 

mbJi 

^.mS^U 

Grasmere  Village  and  Lake^Home  and  grave  of  the  poet  Wordsworth. 


The  fear  element  of  his  emotions  grew  stronger.  First  he 
feared  for  himself,  then  for  her.  What  if  she  should  acquire  more 
than  a  brotherly  fondness  for  him?  There  was  no  reason  why  she 
should,  and  yet  she  might.  That  would  never  do.  He  had  suffered 
once,  he  told  himself,  and  he  desired  for  no  soul  that  experience. 
He  shuddered  when  he  thought  that  he  might  be  the  cause.  What, 
if  anything,  had  he  done  in  this  case?  He  had  walked  and  talked 
only.  He  had  been  very  interested,  it  is  true,  but  their  talks  had 
been  strictly  within  proper  bounds.  And  yet,  why  did  she  look  at 
him  like  that?  Why  had  her  hand  lingered  softly  in  his,  whenever  he 
liad  said  goodby? 


352  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

The  sun  went  down  over  the  western  hill.  Long  shadows  crept 
out  over  the  valley  below  and  up  the  distant  hillside .  The  mellow 
haze  in  which  the  distant  landscape  lay  bathed  took  upon  itself  a 
deeper  tint  of  pearly  blue.  The  picnicers  now  gathered  in  one 
group  on  the  hillside  below,  and  they  motioned  for  Willard  and 
Elsa  to  join  them,  which  they  did.  Then  songs  were  sung — the 
soul  inspiring  Latter-day  Saints  hymns.  Passers-by  paused  to  listen. 
Poems  were  recited,  and  dialect  stories  were  told.  Who  that  has 
ever  enjoyed  these  outings  in  the  mission  field  will  ever  forget  the 
simple  joys  and  pure  delights  of  such  gatherings? 

Then  began  the  walk  homeward.  Willard  purposely  avoided 
Elsa,  who  chatted  gaily  with  a  group  of  friends.  Twice  they  met, 
but  each  time  Willard  managed  to  become  separated.  Before  the 
fields  were  crossed,  Elsa  became  noticeably  quiet.  After  a  time  she 
quickened  her  pace,  and  he  saw  her  no  more  until  they  reached  home . 
He  parted  with  Sister  Fernley  and  Bessie  at  the  door,  but  Elsa  was 
not  to  be  seen. 

''Where  is  Elsa?"  he  inquired. 

"She  must  have  come  on  ahead,"  replied  her  mother.  "She 
complained  of  a  headache." 

"I'll  go  in  and  say  goodnight,"  he  said. 

She  was  sitting  by  an  open  window,  resting  her  head  on  the 
casement,  and  looking  out  into  the  coming  night. 

"I  have  come  to  say  goodnight,"  he  said. 

She  arose,  and  took  his  hand.  "Goodnight,"  she  said  simply 
and  softly.  There  was  a  slight  tremor  in  her  voice.  Her  face  was 
a  little  pale,  and  her  eyes  were  swimming.  Willard  held  her  hand 
for  a  moment,  and  then  saying  goodnight  turned  and  left.  The 
emotions  within  himself  seemed  to  accumulate  and  materialize  into 
a  big  hard  lump  in  his  breast,  and  oh,  how  it  did  hurt! 

The  next  day  Willard  had  a  long  confidential  talk  with  his 
conference  president;  and  a  week  later  Elder  Willard  Dean  received 
from  the  Liverpool  office  a  communication  transferring  him  from 
the  Leeds  to  the  London  conference. 


(to  bk  continued.) 


A  FRAGMENT  OF    EARLY   CHURCH    HISTORY 

BY  EDWARD  H.  ANDERSON. 


Elder  Benjamin  Winchester  was  a  zealous  worker  in  the  early 
days  of  the  Church.  He  was  one  of  the  first  converts  to  the  gos- 
pel who  came  from  New  York.  In  1837,  he  removed  from  his  na- 
tive state,  and  settled  in  New  Egypt,  New  Jersey,  where  the  first 
sermon  in  that  section  of  the  state  was  preached  by  him.  He  con- 
tinued for  some  time  to  hold  regular  services  there,  and  also 
preached  in  neighboring  places,  giving  in  his  talks  a  minute  ac- 
count of  the  discovery  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  in  the  Hill  Cu- 
morah,  near  Palmyra,  New  York,  and  of  the  restoration  of  the 
gospel  to  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith. 

The  Messenger,  printed  in  Allentown,  New  Jersey,  August  24, 
1905,  and  from  which  a  number  of  the  facts  in  this  sketch  are 
culled,  contains  a  reference  to  his  early  labors.  He  is  said  to  have 
obtained  and  baptized  some  fifty  converts, among  them  being  Abra- 
ham Burtis,  who  became  a  preacher.  He  proclaimed  the  gospel 
in  many  of  the  surrounding  villages,  among  them  Homerstown. 
Cream  Ridge,  Forked  River,  Toms  River,  and  Allentown,  and  many 
meetings  were  held  by  him.  **At  Allentown, 'Mormon'  services 
were  held,"  says  the  Messenger,  "at  times  in  the  schoolhouse  that 
formerly  stood  at  the  corner  of  what  is  now  the  Peter  Wikoft" 
farm  on  the  Imlaystown  road.  One  of  the  preachers  here  was 
Elder  Benjamin  Winchester.  Stephen  B.  Robe,  a  former  Allen- 
town merchant,  became  a  preacher  in  this  neighborhood  about 
1840,  and  he  and  his  wife,  who  was  Sarah  Wikoff,  subsequently 
removed  with  some  others,  from  Cream  Ridge  to  Salt  Lake  City." 

"About  this  time,"  continues  our  authority,  "Reverend  Henr>- 
Perkins,  of  the  Allentown  Presbyterian  church,  felt  it  his  duty  to 
counteract,  'if  possible,  the  effect  produced  in  this  region  through 
the  efforts  of  the  'Mormon'  missionaries.  He  aroused  much  inter- 
est here  and  elsewhere  by  his  attacks  on  the  doctrine  of  the  new 


354 


IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 


faith.  One  of  the  largest  audiences  that  assembled  to  hear  Mr. 
Perkins  was  at  Emley's  Hill  on  a  week  day's  summer  afternoon. 
It  was  not  long  after  that  Elder  Winchester  replied  to  his  dis- 
course by  a  sermon  at  the  brick  schoolhouse  on  Cream  Ridge , 
which.also  drew  a  large  assemblage." 

The  brick  schoolhouse,  of  which  a  cut  is  herewith  presented, 
is  still  standing,  and  we  are  told  that  among  the  teachers  who 
taught  when  the  "Mormons", were  there,  were  Emanuel  Hodson, 
and  two  others  named  Weed  and  Jobes.  Mary  B.  Wikoff,  a  com- 
paratively recent  convert  to  the  gospel,  some  months  ago,  kindly 


Brick  Schoolhouse,  Cream  Ridge,  N.  J. ,  where  the  elders  held  meetings. 

Mary  Wikoff  writes  fromElmwood  Farms,  N.  J. :  "The  school  house  is  located 
one-fourth  of  a  mile  from  the  Wikoff  home,  across  country.  My  grandmother,  a 
child  of  eleven  or  fourteen,  was  present  when  a  lady  arose  and  discoursed  '^\n 
tongues."^ 


sent  this  photograph,  also  that  of  the  mansion  of  James  L.  Wikoff, 
with  a  copy  of  the  Messenger,  to  President  Joseph  F.  Smith.  In 
her  (letter,  among  other  matters,  she  says:  ''I  am  happy  and 
thankful  that  my  heavenly  Father  has  enabled  me  to  say,  I  am  cer- 
tain we  have  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  May  God  bless  you.  May 
you  ever  find  your  associates  to  be  staunch  and  true  to  you,  and 
close  followers  of  Christ."     Mr.  James  L.  Wikoff,  who  lives  in  the 


A  FRAGMENT  OF  EARLY  CHURCH  HISTORY.  355 

mansion  referred  to,  writes  as  follows  to  the  editor  of  the  Messen- 

l/er: 

I  understand  you  will  give  some  reminiscences  of  the  old  brick  schooihouse 
which  stands  opposite  to  my  homestead,  about  one-quarter  of  a  mile  distant.  I 
spent  most  of  my  school  days  there,  as  did  my  father  and  mother.  An  old  frame 
schooihouse  stood  on  the  site  when  my  father  first  started  to  school,  and  as  a 
child  he  helped  cart  the  brick.  It  was  quite  *a  noted  place  when  the  Mormons 
held  meetings  there,  and  great  crowds  were  attracted  by  the  miracles  performed 
by  them.  My  mother  was  present  when  a  very  estimable  lady,  modest  and  retiring 
in  disposition,  arose  by  the  power  of  unseen  influence  and  discoursed  in  tongues, 
as  it  is  called  in  the  scripture.  No  one  present  understood  the  language.  They 
(the  Mormons)  gained  many  converts,  but  when  the  doctrine  of  polygamy  was  ad- 
vanced their  enthusiasm  was  noticeably  lessened. 

When  the  schooihouse  was  built,  it  was  in  the  midst  of  a  large  woods  cover- 
ing many  acres,  and  was  later  cleared.  Some  of  it  stood  until  very  recently.  The 
above  facts  can  be  verified  by  some  of  the  old  families  now  living. 

Yours  truly, 

James  Wikofp. 

Concerning  Elder  Winchester,  it  is  noted  in  the  biography  of 
Apostle  Erastus  Snow  that  when  the  Prophet  .Joseph  3mith  re- 
turned from  Washington,  in  March,  1840,  he  told  Elder  Snow  that 
his  labors  were  greatly  needed  in  Pennsylvania.  Elder  Snow  there- 
fore left  to  fill  this  mission  April  28,  1840,  and  in  early  May,  with 
his  companion,  Elder  S.  James,  began  his  labors  in  Virginia  and 
continued  them  in  Philadelphia,  where  he  was  joined  by  Elder 
Winchester.  He  held  meetings  at  one  time  for  five  successive 
days  in  a  New  Jersey  forest  where  two  thousand  people  were  pres- 
ent, on  one  occasion,  and  seven  were  baptized.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  a  short  visit  to  Nauvoo,  Elder  Snow  with  Elder  Winches- 
ter continued  with  unabated  zeal  missionary  labors  in  Philadelphia 
and  surrounding  counties,  including  New  Egypt,  New  Jersey,  until 
August,  1841,  when  they  both  left  for  Salem,  Massachusetts,  where 
they  had  been  appointed  to  labor.  It  was  during  this  period  that 
the  Gospel  Reflector,  a  semi-monthly  periodical,  was  published  in 
the  interest  of  the  Church,  the  first  number  being  issued  in  Phila- 
delphia, January,  1841,  with  Benjamin  Winchester  as  editor.  Elder 
Winchester  was  also  the  author  of  a  Synopsis  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
(ind  Concordance,  chiefly  designed  to  illustrate  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-day  Saints,  to  which  was  added. 


356  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

as  an  appendix,  an  epitome  of  ecclesiastical  history,  published  by 
B.  Winchester,  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  in  Philadelphia,  1842.  The 
book,  one  of  the  few  additions  to  early  literature  in  the  Church, 
consists  of  256  pages,  and  is  a  splendid  scriptural  exposition  of 
gospel  doctrines  and  first  principles.  It  is  endorsed  by  Erastus 
Snow,  (July  19,  1842,)  who  indulges^ 'in  the  hope  and  sincere  be- 
lief, that  it  will  receive  from  the  Christian  public  that  patronage  it  so 
richly  deserves ."    A  copy  is  in  possession  of  Prest .  Joseph  F,  Smith . 

Jensen's  Historical  Record  is  authority  for  the  statement  that 
Benjamin  Winchester  was  a  member  of  Zion's  Camp  which  left 
Kirtland,  in  May,  1834,  to  aid  the  Saints  who  had  been  driven  out 
of  Jackson  county,  Mo.,  and  that  his  daughter,  Maria,  was  sealed 
to  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith,  with  others,  during  the  last  three 
years  of  the  Prophet's  life. 

Referring  to  early  missionary  efforts  in  New  Jersey,  the  Mes- 
senger further  says : 

A  large  number  joined  the  society  at  Hornerstown,  where  they  finally  built 
a  church,  and  where  many  of  the  people  became  adherents  to  the  new  doctrine. 
This  movement  then  extended  to  Toms  River,  where  many  influential  citizens 
joined  the  Mormon  Church  and  practiced  its  peculiar  rites  and  ceremonies. 
Here,  too,  a  church  was  built  on  the  south  side  of  the  river,  which  is  remembered 
as  the  first  building  in  which  the  Ocean  county  courts  were  held  after  the  county 
was  established,  and  before  the  court  house  was  built.  Their  preachers  also  went 
as  far  south  as  Forked  River,  where  they  made  considerable  impression,  and  some 
were  baptized  in  the  mill  pond  there. 

Joseph  Smith,  the  founder  of  Mormonism,  visited  New  Egypt,  Horners- 
town and  Toms  River,  in  1840,  and  "sealed"  a  large  number.  William  Smith, 
brother  of  the  prophet,  frequently  preached  at  New  Egypt,  one  of  his  sermons  be- 
ing at  the  funeral  of  Alfred  Wilson,  who  was  originally  a  Methodist,  but  became 
a  Mormon  preacher.  Another  preacher  formerly  a  Methodist,  was  James  L. 
Curtis. 

In  1850,  the  church  at  Toms  River  was  in  a  flourishing  condition,  and  was 
occasionally  visited  by  their  leading  men.  These  were  occasions  of  great  interest 
to  the  Saints.  Among  their  rites  at  that  time  was  anointing  the  sick  and  the 
laying  on  of  hands  of  the  elders  to  heal  diseases. 

John  Taylor,  the  successor  of  Joseph  Smith  and  Brigham  Young,  as  head  of 
the  Church,  had  preached  in  Ocean  county,  and  was  probably  the  last  who  preached 
as  far  south  as  Forked  River.  He  held  forth  about  1851,  in  the  old  schoolhouse 
at  that  place,  and  his  sermons  seemed  to  differ  but  little  from  an  old  fashioned 
Methodist  sermon,  on  the  necessity  of  salvation,  as  he  made  but  little  allusion  to 
the  peculiar  tenets  of  Mormonism. 


A  FRAGMENT  OF  EARLY  CHURCH  HISTORY.         357 

About  1852,  a  number  of  converts  left  Ocean  and  Monmouth  counties  for 
Salt  Lake  City, among  them  being  Joseph  Chamberlain  and family-of  Forked  River, 
some  of  whom  afterwards  became  quite  prominent  in  public  affairs.  Before 
reaching  their  destination  they  encountered  serious  hardships  in  crossing  the 
plains. 

It  is  generally  conceded  the  Mormon  converts  were  noted  for  their  sincer- 
ity, industry,  and  frugality.  Among  their  converts  in  this  vicinity  were  members 
of  the  well-known  families  of  Wikoff,  Steward,  Conover,  Curtis  and  Ivins,  of 
Cream  Ridge. 

This  little  "Mormon"  Church  referred  to  above,  and  which 
was  built  at  Toms  River,  was  sold  owing  to  removals  and  death  of 
the  Saints,  in  1878,  to  Franklin  Harris,  and  was  afterwards  used 
by  him  as  a  storehouse.     Our  authority  goes   on   to   state:  "Al- 


The  Wikoff  Homestead  on  Cream  Ridge,  built  in  1766. 

Writes  Mary  Wikoff:  "This  was  called  by  the  'Gentiles'  the  'Old  'Mormon 
Temple,'  because  my  great  grandparents,  who  were  "Mormons,'  saw  fit  to  shelter 
the  early  elders,  Orson  Pratt  among  the  number,  and  we  think  Joseph  Smith.' 

though  the  local  church  as  an  organization  had  ceased  to  exist 
some  time  previously,  there  were  still  many  members  of  that  faith 
in  the  town.  A  singular  condition  of  affairs  in  several  homes 
there  was  that  some  of  the  furniture  and  household  goods  which 
had  been  made  ready  for  packing,  years  previously,  in  anticipa- 
tion of  removing  to  Salt  Lake,  still  remained  in  the  same  condi- 
tion, hoping  they  would  yet  be  called  to  join  their  brethren  in  that 


358  TMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

western  city  of  the  Saints .  But  for  some  of  them  that  time  never 
came,  and  their  eyes  finally  closed  without  having  had  a  view  of 
the  long  wished-for  and  far  away  land  of  promise  in  Utah." 

As  to  Elder  Winchester,  he  visited  Utah  on  one  occasion, 
but  returned  east  again.  His  father  and  mother,  Stephen 
Winchester  and  wife,  lived  and  died  true  and  faithful  mem- 
bers of  the  Church,  in  the  Seventeenth  ward,  Salt  Lake 
City;  and  a  brother,  James  Winchester,  still  resides  in  this  city,  a 
respected  citizen. 

A  notice  in  the  Trenton  Advertiser,  quoted  in  the  Messenger 
referred  to,  calls  attention  to  two  "Mormon"  elders,  neatly 
attired  and  modest-looking  in  appearance,  holding  evangelistic  ser- 
vices on  the  street-corners,  in  that  city.  There  names  were 
Frederick  R.  Hicken,  of  Heber  City,  Utah,  and  Howard  Streeper 
of  Rudy,  Idaho. 

And  so  the  work  of  the  Lord  goes  onward.  Elders  bearing 
the  same  message,  at  intervals  still  traverse  the  country,  and 
visit  the  cities  where  years  ago  Elders  Smith,  Snow,  Taylor, 
Winchester  and  others,  raised  their  voices  in  defense  of  truth, 
and  in  testimony  of  the  angel  visit  to  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith. 

Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


In  the  Petrified  Forests  of  Arizona. 


IN  THE  PETRIFIED   FORESTS  OF  ARIZONA. 


The  scenes  herewith  presented  were  photographed  by  Elder 
George  Albert  Smith,  on  his  recent  visit  to  Arizona.  They  give  a 
glimpse  of  the  wonderful  petrified  forests  of  that  state  in  which 
large,  once  flourishing  trees  have  been  turned  to  stone  through 
mineral  action.  In  certain  places,  the  Colorado  river  has  cut 
through  six  thousand  feet  of  strata,  exposing  formations  down  to 
carboniferous  and  tertiary  marine  strata;  and  it  has  been  said,  as 
recorded  in  Americana,  that  every  period  of  the  world's  history 
since  the  dawn  of  life  is  represented  in  the  geology  of  Arizona. 

Near  Holbrook,  Navajo  county,  is  a  wonderful  chalcedony 
forest,  with  trunks  four  feet  thick,  cracked  into  exquisitely  colored 
blocks.  Chalcedony  is  a  mineral,  a  variety  of  quartz,  resembling  milk 
diluted  with  water,  semi-transparent  and  more  or  less  clouded  with 
circles  and  spots,  and  is  found  usually  in  cavities  of  rocks  uncrys- 
tallized.  In  the  photos  may  be  seen  trees  and  parts  of  trees 
turned  to  stone,  perhaps  through  the  penetrating  action  of  this  or 
other  mineral,  and  left  upon  the  dreary  desert  as  witnesses  of  the 
green  forests  that  flourished  here  in  ages  past. 


^ 

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In  the  Petrified  Forests  of  Arizona 


FOR  THE  INCREASE  OF   FAITH, 


[Under  this  title,  the  Era  will  contain  from  time  to  time  such  experiences, 
contributed  by  living  witnesses,  as  will  tend  to  increase  and  strengthen  the  faith 
of  the  reader  in  the  "marvelous  work  and  a  wonder"  which  our  Heavenly  Father 
has  founded  in  the  earth, through  the  instrumentality  of  the  i'rophet  Joseph  Smith, 
and  continued  under  the  inspiration  of  his  successors.  For  the  fact  is  clear  that 
the  manifestations  of  the  Spirit,  under  the  former  and  present  authorities  of  the 
Church,  were  and  are  continued  as  under  Joseph  the  Prophet,  and  are  as  strong  and 
frequent  as  during  any  period  in  Church  history,  ancient  or  modern.  These  incidents 
are  intended  to  illustrate  this  truth, as  well  as  to  increase  the  faith  of  the  reader  in 
the  care,  protection  and  interest  of  our  Father  in  heaven  over  his  children.  We 
solicit  contributions  for  this  department. — Editors.] 

SACREDNESS  OF  THE  TEMPLE. 
BY   HEBER  J.  GRANT,  OF    THE  QUORUM  OF  TWELVE  APOSTLES. 


Some  weeks  ago,  I  had  the  privilege  of  visiting,  in  company 
with  my  brother,  Joseph  Hyrum  Grant,  our  two  Canadian  stakes, 
and  the  Big  Horn  stake  in  Wyoming.  He  related  two  incidents 
which  greatly  impressed  me,  and,  as  they  are  faith-promoting  in 
their  character,  I  have  pleasure  in  repeating  them  for  the  benefit 
of  the  readers  of  the  Era. 

As  is  generally  known,  prior  to  the  dedication  and  opening  of 
the  Salt  Lakf^  Temple  for  ordinance  work,  a  party,  not  of  our 
faith,  was  permitted  to  go  through  the  building.  This  circum- 
stance tried  my  brother's  feelings,  and  he  was  greatly  astonished 
later  to  be  greeted  by  an  attorney,  one  of  those  who  had  had  the 
privilege  of  going  through  the  Temple— who  said  that  he  had 
never  in  his  entire  life  had  such  an  impression  made  upon  him  a.^ 
that  which  he  received  while  in  the  Temple.  He  felt  that  he  was  in 
very  deed  "treading  upon  holy  ground,"  and  that  he  was  near  his 
Creator.  He  had  never  taken  any  interest  whatever  in  religious 
matters;  had  been  rather  skeptical;  but  such  a  profound  impres- 
sion had  been  made  upon  him  during  his  visit  to  the  Temple,  that 
he  would  gladly  travel  around  the  world  for  the  privilege  of  again 


362  IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

entering  its  sacred  precincts .  As  he  was  passing  through  the 
building,  one  of  the  persons  with  him  stepped  up  to  a  table  upon 
which  were  our  Church  works,  and  inquisitively  opened  one  of  the 
books.  This  act  of  irreverent  curiosity  so  outraged  his  feelings 
that  he  felt  almost  as  though  he  could  strike  the  man.  It  aroused 
such  a  feeling  of  antagonism  against  the  person  who  had  carelessly 
handled  the  books  in  this  sacred  edifice,  that  he  never  could  have 
the  same  kindly  feelings  toward  him  thereafter. 

When  I  heard  the  above  incident  related,  I  asked  myself  the 
question,  "Do  the  Latter-day  Saints  who  have  the  privilege  of 
entering  our  holy  temples,  appreciate  the  great  blessing  that  is 
given  to  them,  and  do  they,  in  very  deed,  realize,  as  did  this  man 
of  the  world,  inclined  to  skepticism,  that  they  are  treading  upon 
'holy  ground?'  "  We  receive  so  many  blessings  from  the  Lord, 
among  the  greatest  of  which  is  the  privilege  of  officiating  in  the 
temples,  that  I  sometimes  think  these  blessings  become  common- 
place, and  are  not  fully  appreciated,  and  that  our  hearts  do  not  go 
out,  as  they  should,  in  gratitude  to  God  for  his  blessings  to  us. 

AID  FROM  BEYOND  THE  VEIL. 

The  second  incident  was  equally  as  striking  as  the  first.  A 
business  man  from  Missouri,  who  had  visited  Salt  Lake  City  several 
times,  expressed  his  pleasure  with  what  he  had  seen.  He  said  he 
was  very  thankful  to  have  the  opportunity  of  visiting  Utah  a  num- 
ber of  times,  and  to  have  the  impressions  which  he  had  enter- 
tained regarding  the  Latter-day  Saints  entirely  changed.  He  had 
learned  to  respect  the  people  as  being  among  the  best  with  whom 
he  had  ever  mingled.  He  had  written  to  his  wife,  telling  her  of 
his  change  of  opinion  regarding  the  "Mormons;"  and  she  answered 
that  he  had  been  away  from  home  so  long  that  he  "did  not  know 
the  difference  between  silk  and  calico."  He  remarked  that  the 
next  time  he  came  to  Utah,  he  was  going  to  bring  his  wife  with 
him ,  as  he  felt  sure  a  visit  would  entirely  eradicate  from  her  mind 
the  spirit  of  hatred  and  animosity  she  had  for  the  "Mormon"  people. 

Subsequently  he  visited  Utah,  accompanied  by  his  wife,  but 
she  positively  refused  to  meet  a  Latter-day  Saint.  Some  days 
later,  my  brother  was  very  much  astonished  to  receive  a  request 
from  the  lady  to  visit  her  at  her  hotel.      She  questioned  him  very 


FOR  THE  INCREASE  OF  FAITH.  363 

closely  about  temple  work,  and  soon  began  asking  such  pertinent 
questions  about  matters  connected  with  the  temple   ceremonies, 
that  he  refused  to  answer  her.  He  decided  that  she  must  have  been 
talking   with    an   apostate    or   some   one   familiar  with    temple 
ceremonies.     He  had  learned  from  a  previous  conversation   with 
her  husband  that  she  had  expressed  the  most  profound   contempt 
and  hatred  for  the  temple  work,  stating  that' she  would  feel  like 
having  the  building  torn  down,  if  she  had  the  power,   should   the 
"Mormons"  presume  to  perform  blasphemous  ceremonies  initiating 
her  father  and  mother  into  their  faith .      He  afterwards  learned 
that  the  lady  had  been  visited  in  her  dreams  by  her  parents,  and 
that   they   had   given  her  information  in  detail  regarding  temple 
work,and  informed  her  that  the  only  place  on  earth  where  she  could 
perform  labors  for  them  and  secure  privileges  which  they  wished 
to  enjoy,  was  in  a  "Mormon"  temple.     At  first  she  paid  no  atten- 
tion to  those  dreams,  but  they  were  repeated,  and  the   impression 
became  so  strong  that  she  sent  for  my  brother  to  question   him ; 
and  she  later  visited  a  relative  of  hers,  a  cousin,  who  was  working 
in  the  Logan  temple,  and  whom  she  had  previously  declared  she 
never  desired  to  meet,  because  the  cousin  had  joined  the   "Mor- 
mon"  Church.     Afterwards,  she  attended  the  meetings  in   our 
Tabernacle,  and  some  time  later  her  husband  remarked  to  my 
brother,  "You  certainly  have  captured  my  wife;  she's  a  'Mormon.' 
I'll  have  to  take  her  home;  I  only  brought  her  here  to  change  her 
feelings  of  prejudice,  but  now  she's  practically  a  'Mormon,'  " 

The  gentleman  returned  home  to  Missouri,  where  he  died. 
My  brother  has  always  regretted  that  he  does  not  know  the 
name  and  address  of  the  wife,  because  he  believes  that  if  one  of 
our  missionaries  would  call  upon  her,  that  she  would  accept  the 
gospel.  Should  the  lady's  cousin,  who  resided  at  Logan  at  the 
time  of  this  incident,  see  this  article  and  recall  the  visit  which 
was  made  to  her,  I  would  very  much  appreciate  her  sending  me 
her  cousin's  address. 

Incidents  of  this  kind  are  certainly  faith-promoting  in  their 
character,  and  go  to  show  to  the  Latter-day  Saints  that  those 
on  the  other  side  of  the  veil  are  ready  and  anxious  to  aid  us  in  the 
accomplishment  of  the  labors  that  devolve  upon  us  in  performing 
vicarious  work  in  the  temples. 
Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


A  TRIBUTE  TO  MARGARET  HULL. 


BY   SUSA  YOUNG   GATES, 


By  the  death,  Nov.  12,  1907,  of  Sister  Margaret  Craig  Hull, 
the  Church  lost  one  of  its  most  loyal  workers.  She  was  born 
March    13,    1852,   in   Edinburgh,   Scotland,  of    goodly   parents, 

George  Swan  and  Agnes  Mc- 
donald, who  had  joined  the 
Church  ten  years  before  her 
birth.  In  May,  1863,  her 
mother  and  six  children,  of 
whom  Margaret  was  the 
third,  sailed  from  Liverpool 
for  Utah  in  the  ship  Antarctic. 
Crossing  the  plains  with  ox 
teams,  and  walking  many 
miles  of  the  way,  the  good 
mother  and  her  band  of  little 
ones,  the  oldest,  Douglas, only 
fourteen  years  of  age,  arrived 
in  Salt  Lake  City  on  Septem- 
ber 25,  1863.  Her  husband 
reached  the  valley  in  1864, 
having  remained  in  England 
as  a  missionary. 

After  their  arrival  in 
Utah,  Margaret's  life  was 
not  greatly  different  from  that  of  other  girls  of  the  time.  They 
were  early  days  and  she  passed  through  many  of  the  hardships 
incident  thereto.      She  was  always  a  faithful  worker  in  the  wards 


MARGARET    HULL 


A  TRIBUTE  TO  MARGARET  HULL.  36r, 

in  which  she  resided.  Shortly  after  arriving  in  the  valley  the  fam- 
ily located  in  the  Fifteenth  Ward  and  Margaret  remained  a  mem- 
ber of  that  ward  until  1904,  or  about  thirty-nine  years,  during  all 
of  which  time,  as  girl,  young  woman,  wife,  and  mother,  she  was  a 
zealous  worker  in  all  departments  of  the  ward  work.  In  1877, 
April  28,  she  was  married  to  Thomas  Hull,  a  member  of  the  Gen- 
eral Board  Y.  M.  M.  I.  A.  and  formerly  General  Secretary,  by 
President,  then  Apostle,  Joseph  F.  Smith,  at  his  residence,  the 
Endowment  House  being  closed;  and  later,  in  December  of  the 
same  year; they  were  sealed,  the  house  having  been  reopened,  thif; 
ceremony  also  being  performed  by  President  Joseph  F.  Smith. 

Sister  Hull  has  been  best  known  for  her  beautiful  voice.  She 
inherited  the  song  talent  from  her  mother,  who  possessed  a  voice 
of  remarkable  beauty.  During  all  the  years  of  her  life.  Sister 
Hull  used  the  rich  gift  with  which  she  was  endowed  for  the  bless- 
ing, comfort,  and  benefit  of  the  Saints.  She  sang  for  many  years 
in  the  Fifteenth  ward  choir,  which  for  a  long  time  enjoyed  the 
reputation  of  being  the  best  ward  choir  in  the  Church.  She  was 
also  a  member  of  the  Tabernacle  choir,  singing  under  Conductors 
Sands,  Thomas,  Careless,  Beesley  and  Stephens.  They  may  be 
numbered  by  thousands  who  have  been  made  to  rejoice  by  her 
song.  She  excelled  in  sacred  music,  and  was  ever  ready  to  re- 
spond to  every  call  made  upon  her,  and  at  no  time  did  she  ever 
accept  money  for  her  service.  Years  ago.  President  Joseph  F. 
Smith  made  her  the  promise  that,  so  long  as  she  used  her  gift  for 
the  service  of  the  Lord  and  the  blessing  of  the  Saints,  her  voice 
should  never  lose  its  beauty,  and  this  was  certainly  fulfilled,  for 
up  to  the  time  that  she  was  taken  sick  with  the  illness  which 
terminated  fatally,  her  voice  retained  its  power  and  richness. 

When  the  Salt  Lake  Temple  was  dedicated  she  was  chosen  as 
one  of  the  workers,  and  remained  a  faithful  worker  until  her  death, 
and  sang  in  the  Temple  choir  up  to  the  last  few  years  of  her  ser- 
vice in  that  sacred  house.  She  was  also  an  active  worker  in  the 
Salt  Lake  stake  Relief  Society  Board,  and  when  the  stake  was 
divided  she  was  chosen  as  stake  treasurer  of  the  Relief  Societies 
of  Ensign  stake,  which  position  she  also  occupied  until  the  end  of 
her  life. 

As  daughter,  she  was  ever  faithful  and  obedient .      As  wife. 


366  IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

devoted,  pure,  loving  and  true,  a  helpmeet  in  every  sense  of  the 
term.  As  mother,  self-sacrificing,  tender,  kind  and  wise.  As 
friend,  loyal  and  brave.  As  a  Latter-day  Saint,  ever  faithful  and 
valiant,  courageous  and  exemplary.  She  was  ever  ready  to  re- 
spond to  the  call  of  the  sufferer  or  the  needy.  None  were  too 
lowly  for  her  loving  ministrations.  She  has  brought  joy  to 
many  a  weary  heart,  and  peace  to  many  a  sorrowing  one. 

A  very  dear  friend,  writing  from  Mexico  to  her  family,  says: 

God  only  knows  what  she  has  been  to  me  in  the  past.  She  came  into  my  life 
when  it  was  filled  with  sorrow  and  gloom:  when  it  seemed  that  I  had  lived  in 
vain.  She  came  as  an  inspiration.  She  taught  me  confidence  in  myself,  hope  for 
the  future.  She  was  a  friend  so  near,  so  dear,  so  true,  that  I  could  trust  her  as 
I  would  my  own  soul.  There  was  but  one  Maggie,  there  in  but  one  Maggie;  and 
she  is  gone,  for  a  season;  only  one  more  bright  face  to  meet  us  when  our  time  shall 
come ;  one  more  sweet  voice  to  welcome  us  back  to  that  home  where  there  is 
neither  death  nor  parting. 

Another  loved  friend  and  associate  of  early  days  now  dwell- 
ing in  a  foreign  land  writes  of  her : 

My  Maggie,  too!  ever  since  she  came  into  my  life  like  a  sunbeam  to  bless  and 
brighten  shadowy  days.  In  all  the  years  of  closest  friendship  there  was  no  jar. 
Ever  has  she  been,  aye,  and  ever  must  she  be,  deep  in  my  heart,  treasured  beyond 
price, "  ■ 

These  are  the  testimonies  of  those  who  knew  her  well;  and 
such  is  the  testimony  of  all  with  whom  she  came  in  close  contact. 
Truly  such  a  one  can  ill  be  spared  from  our  lives  on  earth,  truly 
her  reward  is  sure.     God  bless  her  memory! 

From  the  two  friends  whose  testimony  is  here  quoted  came 
the  following  tributes  in  verse : 

MY  LAST  TRIBUTE  TO  MAGGIE. 

0,  Memory,  lead  me  along  with  thee,  To  the  city  whose  summers  were   rife 

Let  me  cling  to  your  quiet  hand,  with  bloom, 

As  down  through  the  shadowy  past  we  Back  to  the  grassy  "Street, 

glide,  Was  there   ever   a  shade,    was   there 

Back  to  the  vanished  years,  ever  a  gloom, 

That  silently  gather  on  either  side  On  the  dawn  of  those  days  so  sweet? 


Some  smiling,  some  in  tears. 

ack  to  the  land  of  the  loving  1: 
Back  to  the  homes  of  yore;  Has  silently  hidden  away, 


0,    Memory,    thanks    that   your  quiet 
Back  to  the  land  of  the  loving  heart,  hand 


A   TRIBUTE  TO  MARGARET  HULL. 


367 


All   but    the   summer's     warmth    and 
song, 
All  but  the  cloudless  sky, 
That  only  the  love  that   was   pure  and 
strong 
Could  live  as  the  years  went  by. 

What  said  the   letter   that   came   to- 
day? 
'  'Maggie,  my  Maggie  is  gone. ' ' 
This  pitiful  cry  from  a  broken  heart, 
From    a    home    that   had    lost    its 
light, 
Yet  Maggie  with  smiling  lips  is  here, 
As  she  sings  to  my  soul  tonight. 

Here  in  the  land  of  the  Long  Ago, 

Here  in  the  dear  old  home ; 

A  beautiful  presence,  fair  and  bright, 

Here  in  her  girlhood  grace ; 
Just  as  she  entered  my  lonely  life 

And  claimed  in  my  heart  a  place. 

I  listen  again  to  that  glorious  voice, 
That  could  lift  the  clouds  of  care; 
That    could   bring   back    hope   to    the 
doubting  heart. 
Could  soothe  the  saddest  hour; 
That  could  lift  from  my  soul  the  heavi- 
est cross 
That    could    iionquer  the   tempter's 
power. 

Uh  hearts  that  are  heavy  with  pain  to- 
night. 


lair, 

voice   of 


Oh  eyes  that  are  dimmed  with  grief  I 
You   see  but    the    desolate,    darkened 
home. 
Ye  cling  to  the  vacant  chair, 
But    listen,    0,    listen!    that  v( 
hers: 
She  sings!  she  is  singing  there. 

There  with  the  loved  ones  gone  before, 
Who  answered  the  Master's  call, 
And  are  gathered  back  to  our  heavenly 
home. 
Back  to  the  mansions  fair: 
Who  were  watching,  and  waiting  with 
outstretched  arms,  — 
Our  Maggie  was  wanted  there. 

How  many  have  gone  from  our  dear  old 

choir, 
And  are  waiting  for  us  to  come ; 
They   whisper    earthward    each     well- 
known  name. 
Our  leader  has  answered  the  call. 
Perhaps  he   missed  from    their    "Wel- 
come home!" 
The  sweetest  voice  of  all. 

Not  many  days  may  I  tarry  here. 
When  my  pilgrimage  is  done. 
When  I  hear  the   call    that   our   loved 
ones  heard. 
The  call  that  will  set  me  free, 
I   will  rest  in  their  loving  arms  at  last, 
And  Maggie  will    sing  to  me. 

Belle  M.  Johnson. 


MAGGIE. 


Weave,  fond  Memory,  weave  thy  mantle 
In  soft  colors  rich  and  rare. 

Weave  thy  mystic,  shimmering  mantle, 
Light  and  shadow  blending  there. 

Skillful  hands  the  shuttle  plying, 
Rare  designs  grow  into  life; 

Fragrant  flowers  and  rich  fruits  spring- 
ing 
From  the  soil  of  pain  and  strife. 


Flowers  that  grow  by  dusty  high- 
ways. 

Crushed,  yet  blooming,  fragrant  still. 
By  meadow  brook  and  shady  byways 

And  in  the  home  nook's  window-sill. 

Threads  of  silver,  threads  of  gold 
Trace  the  names  of  those  who  met 

In  the  pleasant  days  of  old. 
Days  we  never  can  forget ; 


368 


IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 


Met  at  music's  sacred  shrine, 
Zion's  own  dear  songs  to  sing, 

Songs  and  anthems  all  divine. 

How  their  harmonies  live  and  cling, 

As  the  perfume  of  the  flower, 

'Round   the  broken,    shattered  vase! 
This  is  memory's  blessed  dower. 

And  its  tribute  here  I  place. 

Oh,    wond'rous  webb    of  heart-throbs 
woven, 
In  somber  hue  and  tints  most   fair, 
With  loving  hands  I  gently  drape  it 
'Round    her   own,    dear    "Old  Arm 
Chair." 


Place  just  here  this  bunch  of  roses, — 
Maggie's  roses,  bright  and  sweet, 

Where  faith  and  hope  and  love  reposes, 
And  lay  all  at  our  Savior's  feet. 

I  seem  to  hear  her  dear  voice  singing 
Those  songs  of  the  heart  so  soft  and 
low. 

Scenes  in  the  gloaming  to  me  bringing 
As  now  the  sweet  strains  ebb  and  flow. 

Again  on  my  knee   her  head  is  resting, 

Again  her  arms  around  me  twine. 
Soul  speaks  to   soul,    in   the    hour  of 
testing. 
Maggie,   dear  Maggie,  the   victory's 
thine. 

Sarah  E.  Russell. 


THE  CHURCH  OF  LATTER-DAYS. 

(For  the  Improvement  Era.) 


The  Church  of  latter- days  doth  stand 
A  rare  old  organ,  rich  and  grand. 
The  great  musician,  God;  and  these — 
The  Priesthood — the  responsive  keys. 
And  when,  with  perfect  touch,  the  Lord's 
Own  fingers  fall  upon  the  chords, 
The  waking  tones — a  wond'rous  birth 
Of  harmony — flood  all  the  earth 
With  echo,  while  the  nations  pause, 
With  listening  Israel's  applause. 


Theo.   E.  Curtls. 


Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


THE  BOY  PROBLEM. 

BY  DR.  E.  G.  GO  WANS,  JUDGE  OF  THE  JUVENILE  COURT. 


111.— WHAT  THE  SCHOOLS  CAN  DO. 

In  previous  articles  on  this  subject,  there  has  been  emphasized 
the  importance  of  a  better  preparation  for  parenthood,  and  the 
necessity  for  so  modifying  the  present  system  of  education  that 
young  men  and  young  women  who  are  about  to  assume  the  re- 
sponsibilities of  marital  life  may  get  a  thorough  grounding  in  the 
subjects  that  best  prepare  them  for  such  responsibilities,  to  the 
end  that  there  may  be  better  homes.  Now  while,  as  will  be  read- 
ily conceded,  the  establishment  of  better]  homes  will  do  more 
toward  the  solution  of  the  boy  problem  than  any  other  one  thing, 
yet  there  are  other  factors  in  the  solution  of  this  important  problem 
to  which  we  should  direct  our  attention.  The  schools  are  under 
responsibilities  which  affect  the  boy  immediately  and  directly  as 
well  as  those  which  affect  him  indirectly,  in  the  way  of 
furnishing  a  better  preparation  for  parenthood . 

Most  juvenile  delinquency  begins  as  truancy,  and  in  many 
instances  truancy  is  a  protest  against  the  unnatural  and  forced 
restraint  of  modern  school  life.  To  say  that  the  school  itself  is 
not  largely  responsible  for  this,  is  an  attempt  to  put  responsibility 
where  it  does  not  belong.  Considerable  attention  is  now  being 
devoted  to  such  hygienic  considerations  as  the  site  of  the  school 
building,  its  heating,  lighting,  ventilation,  water  supply,  floors, 
furniture,  etc.;  yet  the  fact  remains  that  we  take  boys  and  girls  at 
a  time  when  their  inherent  natural  demand  for  freedom  and  unre- 
strained out-of-door  life  is  greatest,  and  confine  them  for  four  to 
six  hours  a  day  on  a  school  bench,  and  expect  them  to  submit 
without  a  murmur.  Someone  has  said  that  the  modern  school  desk 
is  an  instrument  of  torture,  of  the  present  day  inquisitions. 
Furher,  the  schoolroom  methods   are  adjusted   to   the  needs   of 


370  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

averages,  and  not  to  those  of  individuals,  as  they  should  be. 
Then,  think  of  the  various  sources  of  worry  to  school  children — 
examinations,  marks,  restrictions,  nagging,  ''the  over-pressure 
upon  some  children,  due  to  the  iron-clad  system,"  the  subjection  by 
the  teacher  of  effective  teaching  to  the  mere  securing  of  order;  and 
the  subjection  of  the  child  to  the  daily,  hourly,  monotonous  rou- 
tine of  school  life.  To  all  of  these  things  the  average  child  sub- 
mits. Those  above  and  below^  the  average  have  difficulty, — they 
either  will  not  or  cannot  submit. 

Again,  many  teachers  cling  to  the  ideal  of  giving  knowledge 
rather  than  the  production  of  power,  and  therefore  they  devote 
more  attention  to  physiology  than  to  hygiene;  to  the  when  and 
where  of  a  piece  of  literature,  than  to  the  power  to  enjoy  good 
literature;  to  the  name  and  date  of  birth  of  the  author,  than 
to  the  finding  in  literature  the  source  of  their  nobler  feelings. 

Now,  it  is  not  the  purpose  to  enter  into  an  extended  criticism 
of  schoolroom  methods  (although  as  a  teacher,  we  feel  at  liberty 
so  to  do) ,  but  to  say  that  in  the  crush  and  pressure  of  all  these 
elements  of  school  life,  we  sin  most  grievously  in  not  properly 
looking  after  the  child's  physical  welfare.  There  is  a  "physical 
basis  of  mental  efficiency."  A  sound  body  lies  at  the  basis  of  all 
human  development.  It  should  be  a  perfect  instrument— the 
''willing,  prompt  and  efficient  servant  of  an  intelligent  mind,  and  a 
sensitive  and  enlightened  soul."  We  cannot,  therefore,  continue 
to  regard  the  child's  mental  ability  as  something  apart  from  his 
physical  life ;  and  in  order  to  make  clear  the  duty  of  the  schools  in 
this  matter,  let  me  here  give  place  to  some  facts  concerning 
growth  and  development. 

In  early  foetal  life,  the  brain  and  nervous  system  take  the 
Uad  in  development  over  the  other  systems, — alimentary,  circula- 
tory, respiratory,  muscular  and  bony.  This  lead  is  maintained  over 
the  muscles  up  until  seven  or  eight  years  of  age ,  at  which  time  the 
brain  weighs  nearly  as  much  as  during  adult  life.  During  these 
early  years  the  sensory  organs  become  well  developed  and  the 
neuro-muscular  mechanisms  concerned  in  balancing,  walking  and 
talking,  become  fairly  well  developed.  During  this  time  the  child's 
life  should  be  as  natural  as  it  is  possible  to  make,  or  rather  per- 
mit, it  to  be.    Left  to  herself,  Nature  takes  good  care  of  this  pe- 


THE  BOY  PROBLEM.  371 

riod.  We  violate  the  laws  of  development  by  putting  the  child  one 
or  two  years  earlier  than  the  end  of  this  period  into  school,  where 
his  normal  physical  activity  is  restrained.  What  the  child  should 
have  at  this  time  is  a  free  life  in  the  open  air,  developing  his 
fundamental  activities;  in  contact  with  nature;  in  company  with 
those  of  his  own  age— developing  his  sense  organs,  and  engaging 
in  such  games  as  he  shows  an  instinctive  and  inherent  desire  for; 
instead  of  writing,  sewing,  practicing  on  the  piano,  or  engaging 
in  other  exercises,  either  in  or  out  of  school,  which  require  deli- 
cate muscular  co-ordination,  and  bring  into  play  large  brain  areas. 
To  disregard  these  plain  indications  is  the  surest  way  to  produce 
instability  of  the  nervous  system,  and  sow  the  seeds  that  later 
bring  forth  St,  Vitus  dance,  nervous  irritability,  sensitive  nervous 
organizations,  and  general  decrease  in  normal  activity  of  vital 
organs,  which  conditions  are  responsible  for  nearly  all  dissatisfac- 
tion with  school  life,  and  consequent  truancy. 

From  this  time  on  for  six,  eight  or  ten  years,  there  is  rapid 
growth  in  height  and  weight.  The  muscular  and  bony  systems 
develop  rapidly,  the  child  becomes  a  youth  or  a  maiden.  This  is 
the  period  when  the  youth  demands  reasons, — he  must  be  shown. 
There  can  be  no  driving  at  this  time, — he  will  not  permit  it.  He 
can  be  led,  persuaded,  induced,  but  never  driven.  During  this 
time,  too,  there  is  great  danger  of  permanent  injury  through  bad 
nutrition,  under-feeding,  lack  of  exercise,  or  improper  exercise. 
This  is  the  time  when  rational  physical  education  has  an  oppor- 
tunity. Games  and  simple  gymnastics  give  splendid  results  if 
properly  selected  and  well  given,  during  this  period  of  active  mus- 
cular development.  Boys  should  not  be  permitted  to  engage  in 
strenuous  contests,  and  feats  of  speed,  strength  or  endurance  of 
an  unusual  character— to  subject  the  boy  to  such,  when  his  nerv- 
ous and  muscular  systems  are  just  reaching  full  development  and 
growth,  would  certainly  be  injudicious. 

The  great  lesson  to  be  learned  in  the  schools  is  self-control. 
We  are  educating  an  individual  who  is  to  become  a  self-governing, 
self -controlling,  independent  citizen  of  the  world.  If  we  were 
educating  him  to  be  a  slave,  the  sooner  we  accustom  him  to  the 
attitude  a  slave  should  hold  toward  a  master,  the  better;  but,  since 
self-control  is  the  thing  sought  after,  the   sooner  he  begins,  the 


372  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

better.  Proper  .physical  education  has  for  its  purpose  the  devel- 
opment or  self-control  of  the  nervous  and  muscular  systems, 
which  is  fundamental  to  self-control  mentally  and  morally  as  well. 
In  view  of  these  facts,  what  can  the  public  schools  do  toward  solv- 
ing our  present  day  boy  problem?  In  answer,  this  can  be 
said: 

A  rational  system  of  physical  education  could  be  introduced. 
Such  a  system  would  contemplate  the  measurement  and  examina- 
tion of  every  child  in  school  twice  a  year.  This  examination 
should  include  tests  for  the  sight  and  hearing,  as  well  as  the  gen- 
eral physical  measurements  which  indicate  vitality.  After  such 
examinations  the  children  should  receive  the  kind  and  amount  of 
physical  exercise  needed  by  each  one.  Here  must  be  adaptation 
to  individual  needs, — hygienic  work  and  light  recreation  for  the 
average;  corrective  gymnastics,  suited  to  the  individual  needs  of 
the  weak  or  diseased;  and  athletics,  for  the  truly  vigorous. 
Such  examinations  are  possible  with  the  expenditure  of  very  little 
time.  All  of  the  teachers  of  an  ordinary  graded  school,  working 
together  under  intelligent  supervision,  can  measure  all  the  chil- 
dren of  the  school  in  one  day.  Surely  no  other  one  day  in  the  school 
year  could  be  spent  to  such  great  advantage !  How  many  teach- 
ers can  answer  such  questions  as  these,  concerning  each  one  of  her 
pupils:  "Are  you  sure  that  every  child  in  your  class  can  see  every 
portion  of  the  blackboard  distinctly?  Are  you  sure  that  each 
of  your  children  can  hear  everything  said?  Are  there  partially 
deaf  children  in  your  class?  Is  the  inaction  or  slowness  of  some 
of  them  due  to  lack  of  motor  ability,  or  disease?  Do  you  know 
the  amount  of  work,  mental  or  manual,  done  by  each  child  outside 
of  school?  How  much  exercise  does  each  take?  Ought  not 
teachers  to  be  able  to  answer  these  and  a  hundred  other  questions 
concerning  the  child's  physical  nature,  before  she  can  do  her  full 
duty  by  him?  Such  a  system  of  physical  education  and  of  measure- 
ments and  examinations  will  furnish  answers  to  all  these  and 
many  other  questions.  Then,  the  matter  of  adjusting  the  school 
work,  and  the  out-of-doors  exercise,  and  corrective  gymnastics,  to 
the  needs  of  the  individual,  comes  within  range  of  the  possible. 

Not  very  long  ago  a  boy  was  sent  to  the  State  Industrial 
School  for  a  serious  offense.      A  careful  investigation  of  his  rec- 


THE  BOY  PROBLEM.  373 

@rd  brought  out  these  facts:  His  career  as  a  delinquent  began  as 
a  truant,  and  ran  through  the  series:  incorrigibility,  growing  up 
in  idleness,  associating  with  immoral  persons,  and  finally  the  crime 
which  made  necessary  such  a  sentence.  A  study  of  this  boy  dem- 
onstrated that  he  had  defective  vision,  and  had  never  been  placed 
in  school  so  that  he  could  see  the  work  on  the  blackboard.  He 
was  regarded  as  dull.  His  teacher  said  she  could  not  interest  him 
or  get  along  with  him,  and  he  soon  became  a  truant.  Who  knows 
but  that  his  whole  career  would  have  been  changed,  if  his  teacher 
had  possessed  a  little  definite  knowledge  of  his  physical  condition? 

Every  delinquent  child  is  an  educational  problem,  and  the 
schools  should  set  themselves  the  task  of  solving  them.  A  de- 
partment of  child  study  in  the  public  schools,  where  the  principals 
and  other  trained  observers  would  undertake  to  study  each  one  of 
the  truant  or  incorrigible  children,  would  be  the  rational  thing. 
Then,  mothers  and  fathers  who  have  difficulty  would  bring  before 
such  a  body  of  humane  observers  their  delinquent  children,  with 
full  confidence  that  they  would  be  studied  in  a  careful  and  scien- 
tific way,  and  with  confidence,  too,  that  their  total  environment 
would  be  so  ordered  as  to  bring  the  best  educational  result  in  each 
individual  case.  To  confine  a  boy  or  girl  in  a  school  with  the 
stigma  of  penal  institution  attaching  to  it,  without  first  having 
given  him  or  her  the  advantage  of  such  observation,  is,  to  say  the 
least,  and  in  the  language  of  the  boy  himself,  not  a  "square 
deal." 

Why  do  not  the  schools  introduce  such  reforms?  The  schools 
are  ultra- conservative  institutions,  from  the  universities  down, 
and|they  change  mostly  as  they  are  forced  to  do  so  by  pressure  from 
without.  It  is  the  part  of  the  people  themselves  to  demand  such 
changes,  and  then  they  will  be  forthcoming.  Again,  the  schools 
themselves  desire  to  make  changes,  but  the  parents  will  not  hear 
of  it, — for  example,  the  teachers  would  gladly  do  away  with  the 
present  insane  method  of  grading  and  marking  their  pupils,  if  the 
parents  would  permit  it.  Every  teacher  knows  whether  the  child 
in  her  class  deserves  promotion,  not  by  the  work  it  has  done,  but 
by  what  she  has  observed  in  the  child,  and  knows  of  its  ability.  So 
we  come  back  again  to  the  proposition — better  parents — parents 
who   know  what  the  school  should  be  and  do,  because,  at  best,  it 


374  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

is  only  an  adjunct  to  the  home.  Better  parents  mean  better  teach- 
ers and  better  schools,  as  well  as  better  homes. 

Salt  Lake  City.  Utah. 


SAY  A  WORD  OF  HAPPINESS. 
{For  the  Improvement  Era.) 


Say  a  word  of  happiness.     Say  it  now! 

And  chase  the  care  lines  from  some  troubled  brow . 

Why  should  weary  hearts  around  us,  day  by  day, 

For  want  of  friendly  words,  be  left  to  pine  away? 

Are  we  too  hurried  in  this  selfish  strife 

To  pause  e'en  for  a  moment  to  bless  some  life 

Less  favored  than  our  own,  with  word  or  smile 

That  turns  their  thoughts  from  ill,  and  unto  God,  the  while? 

Is  life  so  short  and  selfish,  pride  so  great, 
That  man  must  sacrifice  his  high  estate 
To  worldly  lust,  to  blind,  unthinking  greed: 
Nor  see,  nor  care  to  hear  a  brother's  need? 
0  God,  if  man  would  only  stop  to  think 
That  each  one  of  the  race  is  an  essential  link 
In  that  great  chain  that  binds  mankind  to  thee ! 
Brothers  and  sisters  all,  in  thy  great  family! 

With  this  thought  e'er  in  mind,  what  love  untold 

Would  warm  anew  the  hearts  now  stern  and  cold ! 

And  what  a  world  were  this  in  which  to  be. 

If  man  unto  his  kind  would  cease  his  inhumanity! 

No  burden  then  or  heartache,  care   and  pain, 

To  mar  man's  peace,  and  rack  the  tired  brain! 

But  earth,  rejoicing  in  her  sweet  release. 

Adorned  as  a  bride  would  wait  the  "Prince  of  Peace." 

Then,  say  a  word  of  happiness;  e'en  today 

Some  weaker  hearts  are  fainting  by  the  way; 

Give  them  thy  strong  right  hand,  and  bid  them  rise. 

And  lift  their  weary  visage  to  the  skies ! 

And  have  them  know  that  thou  art  e'en  as  they, 

Child  of  the  selfsame  God,  made  of  the  selfsame  clay. 

Aye,  turn  but  one  heart  to  God  in  love  and  prayer. 

And  thou  wilt  find  the  day  is  passing  fair. 

LoN.  J.  Haddock. 

Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


THE  WORLD'S  GREAT  RELIGIONS. 

BY   PROFESSOR   LEVI   EDGAR    YOUNG,  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY   OF  UTAH. 


III. 

CONFUCIANISM. 

Fine  words  and  an  insinuating  appearance  are  seldom  associated  with  true 
virtue. 

Hold  faithfulness  and  sincerity  as  first  principles. 

When  we  see  men  of  worth,  we  should  think  of  equalling  them;  when  we  see 
men  of  a  contrary  character,  we  should  turn  inwards,  and  examine  ourselves. 

They  who  know  the  truth  are  not  equal  to  those  who  love  it,  and  they  who 
love  it  are  not  equal  to  those  who  find  pleasure  in  it. — From  the  Writings  of  Con- 
fucius. 

Of  all  oriental  people,  none  strikes  the  European  and  Ameri- 
can so  strangely  as  do  the  Chinese.  Down  through  the  many- 
yeared  history  of  the  world,  China  has  remained  isolated;  and 
though  she  boasts  of  a  third  of  the  world's  population,  and  an  ex- 
tent of  the  world-empire  greater  than  all  Europe,  she  has  kept 
herself  away  from  the  neighboring  nations,  and  has  been  espe- 
cially undesirous  of  mingling  with  Occidental  people.  No  land  in 
all  the  world  is  more  beautiful  than  China;  no  land  is  richer  in 
minerals  and  vegetation.  Wheat  and  rye  fields  stretch  through 
the  valleys  in  almost  endless  vision;  hundreds  of  wild  flowers  grow 
along  the  rivers  and  streams ;  and  the  blossoms  of  the  tea  plant 
perfume  the  air  the  land  over.  To  the  native,  China  is  horizoned 
by  heav^en.  Heaven  is  the  blue  sky  which  gently  folds  the  earth 
to  it  and  gives  it  sunshine  and  life.  In  the  Tian-Shan  mountains, 
which  are  said  to  be  a  part  of  heaven,  the  glories  of  nature  are 
seen  at  their  best.     The  soil  teems  with  the  most  luxuriant  vege- 


376  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

tation,  and  the  light  of  the  warm  oriental  sun  recalls  the  words  of 
Tennyson : 

And  in  the  East, 
God  made  himself  an  awful  Rose  of  Dawn. 

The  Chinese  are  naturally  nature-worshipers.  Ages  ago  the 
great  law-giver,  Confucius,  taught  them  that  there  is  a  divine, 
active  energy  that  takes  hold  of  materiality  and  molds  it  into 
shape.  Materiality  always  existed,  and  is  the  passive  substance 
of  the  universe  upon  which  divine  energy  plays .  This  active  force 
was  never  personified,  as  was  the  God  of  Gautama,  Brahm,  Zoras- 
ter,  or  Mohammed.  The  Chinese  have  never  tried  to  explain  the 
power  that  lies  beyond  the  things  of  nature.  To  them  it  has  al- 
ways been  the  "Unknowable."  They  never  indulge  in  speculative 
controversies;  and,  therefore,  we  do  not  find  in  their  religion  meta- 
physical problems.  They  did  not  reach  beyond  their  everyday  life 
to  try  to  solve  those  problems  that  have  always  puzzled  man.  This 
may  in  part  account  for  their  isolation,  and  for  the  consequent 
stationary  condition  of  the  Chinese,  both  intellectually  and  mor- 
ally. 

China  boasts  of  but  one  supreme  law-giver  and  reformer,  a 
man  who  is  dear  to  the  Mongolian  today,  and  who  has  become  a 
world  character.  This  was  Confucius,  who  was  born  of  very  poor 
parents,  about  500  B.C.  His  life  comes  down  to  us  free  from  tra- 
dition and  myth.  He  typified  the  divine,  active  essence:  his  life 
was  one  of  constant  work.  He  was  not  a  special  gift  of  the  Su- 
preme Intelligence  to  the  race.  He  was  poor  and  lowly  in  stand- 
ing, so  he  told  his  followers,  and  therefore  was  his  life  devoid  of 
miracle  and  super-naturalism.  "He  grew;  he  did  not  come  full 
blown,"  remarks  Professor  Inoue  Tetsujirb,  of  the  Imperial  Uni- 
versity of  Tokyo.  The  Chinese  speak  of  Confucius  as  the  man  who 
met  every  difficulty  of  life  and  overcame  it  because  of  his  remark- 
able strength  and  will  to  achieve.  He  possessed  an  all-compelling 
passion  for  study,  and  like  the  man  of  today  who  steps  into  the 
open,  his  conquest  of  the  things  of  life  came  through  the  toil  of 
an  anguished  soul.  When  manhood's  day  came,  he  gathered  about 
him  his  followers  and  taught  them  as  did  Socrates  before  the  tem- 
ples of  Athens.     "Man  is  by  nature  virtuous,"  he  said,  "and  con- 


THE  WORLD'S  GREAT  RELIGIONS.  377 

tains  the  true  life,  which  is  the  life  of  heaven."  In  the  writings 
©f  this  remarkable  man,  one  finds  no  boasting;  only  a  soul-desire 
of  knowledge.  We  find  him  saying,  possibly  at  a  time  when  a  feel- 
ing of  pessimism  came  over  him:  "In  learning,  it  is  as  if  I  can 
never  attain  the  end.  Moreover,  I  fear  I  shall  lose  what  I  have 
learned."  His  humility  resembles  that  of  Faust  who,  in  a  moment 
of  discouragement,  falls  back  in  his  study  chair,  and  says: 

Alas!  I  have  explored 

Philosophy,  and  Law,  and  Medicine; 

And  over  deep  Divinity  have  pored, 

Studying  with  ardent  and  laborious  zeal ; 

And  here  I  am  at  last  a  very  fool. 

With  useless  learning  cursed, 

No  wiser  than  at  first. 

Confucius  compiled  the  traditions  of  his  people  to  show  how 
righteousness  and  virtue  had  triumphed  over  wrong.  He  became 
the  founder  of  a  system  of  doctrines  that  have  controlled  the  in- 
tellectual and  spiritual  lives  of  the  Chinese  down  to  the  present 
day.  By  reflecting  on  the  laws  of  morality,  he  traced  them  to  their 
origin,  and  they  became  the  absolute  principles  of  government, 
both  locally  and  nationally.  His  was  a  quiet  life.  The  Chinese 
say  that  his  soul  became  pure,  because  of  the  complete  harmony 
between  his  body  and  spirit.  In  his  older  days,  Confucius  never 
stopped  working.  His  will  never  became  weakened;  his  dream  was 
the  perfection  of  self.  Said  he,  "When  I  study  the  way,  I  never 
become  weary  of  it;  when  I  teach  others,  I  never  become  tired.''* 

Though  the  teachings  of  China's  great  law-giver  were  prac- 
tical, they  made  of  the  "Unknowable"  an  abstract  creative  force. 
This  could  not  appeal  to  the  material  senses,  so  the  people  de- 
manded "some  external,  direct  manifestation  of  the  divine."  In 
order  to  visualize  the  power  beyond  self,  the  belief  in  spirits  natur- 
ally grew  among  them.  It  was  not  long  before  the  Chinese,  like 
all  other  oriental  people,  became  polytheists,  and  down  through 
the  ages,  they  developed  a  gross  idolatry,  which  of  all  idolatries  is 
the  most  reprehensible  in  existence .  It  is  carried  into  the  govern- 
ment of  the  state  and  home,  and  has  resulted  jn  a  system  of  pun- 


*  Quoted  by  Professor  Inoue  Tetsujiro,  Imperial  Qniversityjof  Tokyo. 


378  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

ishment  for  evil  action,  that  causes  the  nations  of  the  Occident  to 
shudder. 

Confucius  died  in  479  B.C.  His  people  have  made  but  little 
progress  since  his  day.  Their  manners  and  customs  became  set, 
ages  ago,  and  they  have  sunk  to  a  very  low  condition  of  intelli- 
gence. But  China  is  emerging  from  her  long  sleep,  and,  thanks 
to  our  own  nation,  she  is  coming  in  contact  with  the  progress  of  the 
twentieth  century.  Her  stepping  into  the  light  of  the  new  day 
will  be  slow,  but  as  sure  as  the  law  of  progress  is  the  law  of  God, 
China  will  in  time  come  under  the  redeeming  influence  of  Jesus 
Christ. 
Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


THE  CROSS  OF  SORROW. 
{For  the  Improvement  Era.) 


They  bore  thee,  dear,  to  the  hill-side, 

And  laid  thee  beneath  the  sod. 
While  the  birds  were  joyfully  singing, 
While  youth  fared  forth  a-Maying, 

I  felt  the  chastening  rod. 

Calmly  I  turned  from  thy  grave-side, 

But  the  sky  was  no  longer  blue ; 
The  hills  were  veiled  in  grayness, 

The  sun  was  shadow' d  too. 

My  heart  cried  out  from  its  prison, 

I  lifted  my  hands  and  prayed ; 
Then,  softly,  there  came  from  the  heaves, 

"  "Tis  I,  be  not  afraid;' 
Thou  shalt  be  no  longer  lonely, 

For  the  chosen  of  God  you  stand ; 
You  bear  the  cross  of  sorrow. 

And  now  that  you  understand, 
Go  forth,  on  errands  of  mercy; 

Lift  up  the  fallen  and  faint; 
Comfort  the  sad  and  friendless ; 

List  to  the  prisoner's  plaint; 
When  thy  heart  is  filled  with  compassion, 

While  the  wounds  of  the  suffering  you  bind, 
Ere  the  bells  sound  the  call  to  vespers, 

Joy,  thou  shalt  surely  find." 

Maud  Baggarley 
Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 


EDITOR'S    TABLE. 


*'l   KNOW  THAT  MY  REDEEMER  LIVES." 

This  discourse  was  delivered  in  the  Tabernacle,  Salt  Lake  City,  March  16, 
1902,  by  President  Joseph  F.  Smith,  and  is  reprinted  at  this  time  in  the  Era  be- 
cause of  its  general  value  and  because  it  answers  questions  on  hand  relating  to  the 
distinction  between  the  Holy  Spirit,  or  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  the  Holy  Ghost: 

My  beloved  brethren  and  sisters,  while  listening  to  the  singing 
of  the  last  hymn ,  my  mind  reverted  to  a  revelation  contained  in  the 
Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,  and  I  feel  impressed  to  read  a 
portion  of  it,  and  then  make  a  few  remarks  concerning  it,  if  I  am 
led  to  do  so.  This  revelation  was  given  through  the  Prophet 
Joseph  Smith,  at  Kirtland,  in  May,  1833: 

Verily,  thus  saith  the  Lord,  it  shall  come  to  pass  that  every  soul  who  for- 
saketh  his  sins  and  cometh  unto  me,  and  calleth  on  my  name,  and  obeyeth  my 
voice  and  keepeth  my  commandments,  shall  see  my  face  and  know  that  I  am. 

You  will  remember  that  the  hymn  which  was  sung  by  the 
choir  begins  thus : 

I  know  that  my  Redeemer  lives; 
What  comfort  this  sweet  sentence  gives ! 
He  lives,  he  lives,  who  once  was  dead; 
He  lives,  my  ever- living  head. 

It  occurs  to  me  that  in  the  words  I  have  just  read  from  the  reve- 
lation there  is  a  key  given  to  us,  as  the  people  of  God,  by  which 
we  may  know  how  to  obtain  the  knowledge  which  is  spoken  of  by 
the  poet  in  this  hymn — "I  know  that  my  Redeemer  lives."  The 
conditions  are  stated  by  which  we  may  secure  this  knowledge. 
Furthermore,  every  soul  who  observeth  the  conditions  shall  not 
only  know  that  he  is,  but  he  shall  know  also — 


380  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

That  I  am  the  true  light  that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world; 
And  that  I  am  in  the  Father,  and  the  Father  in  me,  and  the  Father  and  I  art 
one. 

This  is  not  speaking  of  the  greater  light  which  is  especially 
bestowed  upon  those  who  are  born  again;  for  not  every  man  that 
cometh  into  the  world  is  born  again  and  entitled  to  receive  the 
greater  light  by  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost .  Perhaps  it  may  be 
well  for  me  to  make  a  few  remarks  in  relation  to  this  distinction 
between  the  light  of  Christ  that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh 
into  the  world,  and  that  light  which  comes  after  repentance  and 
baptism  for  the  remission  of  sins. 

It  is  by  the  power  of  God  that  all  things  are  made  that  have 
been  made.  It  is  by  the  power  of  Christ  that  all  things  are  gov- 
erned and  kept  in  place  that  are  governed  and  kept  in  place  in  the 
universe.  It  is  the  power  which  proceeds  from  the  presence  of 
the  Son  of  God  throughout  all  the  works  of  his  hands,  that  giveth 
light,  energy,  understanding,  knowledge,  and  a  degree  of  intelli- 
gence to  all  the  children  of  men,  strictly  in  accordance  with  the 
words  in  the  Book  of  Job,  "There  is  a  spirit  in  man;  and  the  in- 
spiration of  the  Almighty  giveth  them  understanding."  It  is  this 
inspiration  from  God,  proceeding  throughout  all  his  creations,  that 
enlighteneth  the  children  of  men;  and  it  is  nothing  more  nor  less 
than  the  spirit  of  Christ,  that  enlighteneth  the  mind,  that  quick- 
eneth  the  understanding,  and  that  prompteth  the  children  of  men 
to  do  that  which  is  good  and  to  eschew  that  which  is  evil;  which 
quickens  the  conscience  of  man  and  gives  him  intelligence  to  judge 
between  good  and  evil,  light  and  darkness,  right  and  wrong.  We 
are  indebted  to  God  for  this  intelligence  that  we  possess.  It  is  by 
the  spirit  which  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world 
that  our  minds  are  quickened  and  our  spirits  enlightened  with  un- 
derstanding and  intelligence .  And  all  men  are  entitled  to  this . 
It  is  not  reserved  for  the  obedient  alone;  but  it  is  given  unto  all  the 
children  of  men  that  are  born  into  the  world. 

GIFT   OF   THE   HOLY   GHOST. 

But  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  bears  record  of  the 
Father  and  the  Son,  which  takes  of  the  things  of  the  Father  and 
shows  them  unto  men,  which  testifies  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  the 


EDITOR'S  2 ABLE.  381 

ever-living  God,  the  Father  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  which  bears  wit- 
ness of  the  truth— this  Spirit,  this  intelligence  is  not  given  unto 
all  men  until  they  repent  of  their  sins  and  come  into  a  state  of 
worthiness  before  the  Lord.  Then  they  receive  it  by  the  laying  on 
of  the  hands  of  those  who  are  authorized  of  God  to  bestow  his 
blessings  upon  the  heads  of  the  children  of  men.  The  Spirit 
spoken  of  in  that  which  I  have  read  is  that  Spirit  which  will  not 
cease  to  strive  with  the  children  of  men  until  they  are  brought  to 
the  possession  of  the  greater  light  and  intelligence.  Though  a 
man  may  commit  all  manner  of  sin  and  blasphemy,  if  he  has  not 
received  the  testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost  he  may  be  forgiven  by 
repenting  of  his  sins,  humbling  himself  before  the  Lord,  and  obey- 
ing in  sincerity  the  commandments  of  God.  As  it  is  stated  here, 
"Every  soul  who  forsaketh  his  sins  and  cometh  unto  me,  and  call- 
eth  on  my  name,  and  obeyeth  my  voice,  and  keepeth  my  command- 
ments, shall  see  my  face  and  know  that  I  am."  He  shall  be  for- 
given, and  receive  of  the  greater  light;  he  will  enter  into  a  solemn 
covenant  with  God,  into  a  compact  with  the  Almigthy,  through  the 
Only  Begotten  Son,  whereby  he  becomes  a  son  of  God,  an  heir  of 
God,  [and  a  joint  heir  with  Jesus  Christ.  Then,  if  he  shall  sin 
against  the  light  and  knowledge  he  has  received,  the  light  that 
was  within  him  shall  become  darkness,  and  oh,  how  great  will  be 
that  darkness!  Then,  and  not  till  then,  will  this  Spirit  of  Christ 
that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world  cease  to  strive 
with  him,  and  he  shall  be  left  to  his  own  destruction. 

This  is  in  accordance  with  the  doctrine  of  Christ,  as  it  is  re- 
vealed in  the  New  Testament;  it  is  in  accordance  with  the  word  of 
God  as  it  has  been  revealed  in  the  latter-day  through  the  Prophet 
Joseph  Smith.  God  will  not  condemn  any  man  to  utter  destruction, 
neither  shall  any  man  be  thrust  down  to  hell  irredeemably,  until  he 
has  been  brought  to  the  possession  of  the  greater  light  that  comes 
through  repentance  and  obedience  to  the  laws  and  commandments 
of  God;  but  if,  after  he  has  received  light  and  knowledge,  he  shall 
sin  against  the  light  and  will  not  repent,  then,  indeed,  he  becomes 
a  lost  soul,  a  son  of  perdition. 

The  question  is  often  asked,  is  there  any  difference  between 
the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  and  the  Holy  Ghost?  The  terms  are  fre- 
quently  used   synonymously.      We  often    say  the  Spirit  of  God 


382  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

when  we  mean  the  Holy  Ghost;  we  likewise  say  the  Holy  Ghost 
when  we  mean  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  Holy  Ghost  is  a  person- 
age in  the  Godhead,  and  is  not  that  which  lighteth  every  man 
that  comes  into  the  world.  It  is  the  Spirit  of  God  which  pro- 
ceeds through  Christ  to  the  world,  that  enlightens  every  man 
that  comes  into  the  world,  and  that  strives  with  the  chil- 
dren of  men,  and  will  continue  to  strive  with  them,  until  it 
brings  them  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  and  the  possession  of  the 
greater  light  and  testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  If,  however,  he 
receive  that  greater  light,  and  then  sin  against  it,  the  Spirit  of 
God  will  cease  to  strive  with  him,  and  the  Holy  Ghost  will  wholly 
depart  from  him.  Then  will  he  persecute  the  truth;  then  will 
he  seek  the  blood  of  the  innocent;  then  will  he  not  scruple  at 
the  commission  of  any  crime,  except  so  far  as  he  may  fear  the 
penalties  of  the  law,  in  consequence  of  the  crime,  upon  himself. 

JESUS   THE   FATHER   OF   THIS   WORLD. 

I  will  read  a  little  further: 
And  that  I  am  in  the  Father,  and  the  Father  in  me,  and  the  Father  and  I  are 


one. 


I  do  not  apprehend  that  any  intelligent  person  will  construe 
these  words  to  mean  that  Jesus  and  his  Father  are  one  person,  but 
merely  that  they  are  one  in  knowledge,  in  truth,  in  wisdom,  in  un- 
derstanding, and  in  purpose;  just  as  the  Lord  Jesus  himself  ad- 
monished his  disciples  to  be  one  with  him,  and  to  be  in  him,  that 
he  might  be  in  them.  It  is  in  this  sense  that  I  understand  this 
language,  and  not  as  it  is  construed  by  some  people,  that  Christ 
and  his  Father  are  one  person.  I  declare  to  you  that  they  are  not 
one  person,  but  that  they  are  two  persons,  two  bodies,  separate 
and  apart,  and  as  distinct  as  are  any  father  and  son  within  the 
sound  of  my  voice.  Yet,  Jesus  is  the  Father  of  the  world,  because 
it  was  by  him  that  the  world  was  made .     He  says : 

And  the  Father  and  I  are  one. 

The  Father  because  he  gave  me  of  his  fulness,  and  ]the  Son  because  I  was  in 
the  world  and  made  flesh  my  tabernacle,  and  dwelt  among  the  sons  of  men. 

I  was  in  the  world  and  received  of  my  Father,  and  the  works  of  him  were 
plainly  manifest; 


EDITOR'S  TABLE.  383 

And  John  saw  and  bore  record  of  the  fulness  of  my  glory;  and  the  fulness  of 
John's  record  is  hereafter  to  be  revealed: 

And  he  bore  record,  saying,  I  saw  his  glory  that  he  was  in  the  beginning  be- 
fore the  world  was ; 

Therefore  in  the  beginning  the  Word  was,  for  he  was  the  Word,  even  the 
messenger  of  salvation. 

The  light  and  redeemer  of  the  world;  the  Spirit  of  truth,  who  came  into  the 
world,  because  the  world  was  made  by  him,  and  in  him  was  the  life  of  men  and 
the  ight  of  men. 

The  worlds  were  made  by  him:  men  were  made  by  him:  all  things  were  made 
by  him,  and  through  him,  and  of  him. 

And  I,  John,  bear  record  that  I  beheld  his  glory,  and  the  glory  of  the  Only 
.  Begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth,  even  the  Spirit  of  truth,  which 
came  and  dwelt  in  the  flesh,  and  dwelt  among  us. 

And  I,  John,  saw  that  he  received  not  the  fulness  at  first,  but  received  grace 
for  grace; 

And  he  received  not  of  the  fulness  at  first,  but  continued  from  grace  to  grace, 
until  he  received  a  fulness: 

And  thus  he  was  called  the  Son  of  God,  because  he  received  not  of  the  fulness 
at  the  first. 

GLORIOUS   POSSIBILITIES   OF   MAN. 

What  a  glorious  thought  is  inspired  in  the  heart  when  we 
read  sentiments  like  this,  that  even  Christ  himself  was  not  perfect 
at  first;  he  received  not  a  fulness  at  first,  but  he  received  grace 
for  grace,  and  he  continued  to  receive  more  and  more  until  he  re- 
ceived a  fulness.  Is  not  this  to  be  so  with  the  children  of  men? 
Is  any  man  perfect?  Has  any  man  received  a  fulness  at  once? 
Have  we  reached  a  point  wherein  we  may  receive  the  fulness  of 
God,  of  his  glory  and  his  intelligence?  No;  and  yet  if  Jesus,  the 
Son  of  God,  and  the  Father  of  the  heavens  and  the  earth  in  which 
we  dwell,  received  not  a  fulness  at  the  first,  but  increased  in  faith, 
knowledge,  understanding  and  grace  until  he  received  a  fulness,  is 
it  not  possible  for  all  men  that  are  born  of  women  to  receive  little 
by  little,  line  upon  line,  precept  upon  precept,  until  they  shall  re- 
ceive a  fulness,  as  he  has  received  a  fulness,  and  be  exalted  with 
him  in  the  presence  of  the  Father? 

The  revelation  continues: 

And  I,  John,  bear  record,  and  lo,  the  heavens  were  opened,  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  descended  upon  him  in  the  form  of  a  dove,  and  sat  upon  him,  and  there 
came  a  voice  out  of  heaven,  saying.  This  is  by  beloved  Son. 


384  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

This  voice  out  of  heaven  came  from  God,   the  Father  of  our 
Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ. 

And  I,  John,  bear  record  that  he  received  a  fulness  of  the  glory  of  the  Father; 

And  he  received  all  power  both  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  and  the  glory  of  the 
Father  was  with  him,  for  he  dwelt  in  him. 

And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  if  you  are  faithful  you  shall  receive  the  ful- 
ness of  the  record  of  John. 

I  give  unto  you  these  sayings  that  ye  may  understand  and  know  how  to  wor- 
ship, and  know  what  you  worship,  that  you  may  come  unto  the  Father  in  my  name, 
and  in  due  time  receive  of  his  fulness. 

For  if  you  keep  my  commandments  you  shall  receive  of  his  fulness,  and  be 
gloriiied  in  me  as  I  am  in  the  Father;  therefore,  I  say  unto  you,  you  shall  receive 
grace  for  grace. 

And  now,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  I  was  in  the  beginning  with  the  Father,  and 
am  the  first-born. 

And  all  those  who  are  begotten  through  me  are  partakers  of  the  glory  of  the 
same,  and  are  the  church  of  the  first-born. 

Ye  were  also  in  the  beginning  with  the  Father,  that  which  is  Spirit,  even  the 
Spirit  of  truth, 

And  truth  is  knowledge  of  things  as  they  are,  and  as  they  were,  and  as  they 
are  to  come ; 

And  whatsoever  is  more  or  less  than  this,  is  the  spirit  of  that  wicked  one  who 
was  a  liar  from  the  beginning. 

The  spirit  of  truth  is  of  God.  I  am  the  spirit  of  truth,  and  John  bore  record 
of  me,  saying — He  receiveth  a  fulness  of  truth,  yea,  even  of  all  truth. 

And  no  man  receiveth  "a  fulness  unless  he  keepeth  his  commandments. 

He  that  keepeth  his  commandments  receiveth  truth  and  light,  until  he  is 
glorified  in  truth  and  knoweth  all  things. 

Man  was  also  in  the  beginning  with  God.  Intelligence,  or  the  light  of  truth, 
was  not  created  or  made,  neither  indeed  can  it  be. 

All  truth  is  independent  in  that  sphere  in  which  God  has  placed  it,  to  act  for 
itself,  as  all  intelligence  also,  otherwise  there  is  no  existence. 

Behold,  here  is  the  agency  of  man,  and  here  is  the  condemnation  of  man;  be- 
cause that  which  was  from  the  beginning  is  plainly  manifest  unto  them  and  they 
receive  not  the  light. 

And  every  man  whose  spirit  receiveth  not  the  light  is  under  condemnation. 

For  man  is  spirit.  The  elements  are  eternal,  andspirit  and  element,  insep- 
arably connected,  receiveth  a  fulness  of  joy: 

And  when  separated,  man  cannot  received  a  fulness  of  joy. 

MAN  TO   BECOME  LIKE  CHRIST. 

In  other  words,    he  spirit  without    the   body  is  not  perfect, 
and  the  body  without  the  spirit  is  dead.     Man  was  ordained  in  the 


EDITOR'S  TABLE.  385 

beginning  to  become  like  Jesus  Christ,  to  become  conformed  unto 
his  image.  As  Jesus  was  born  of  woman,  lived  and  grew  to  man- 
hood, was  put  to  death  and  raised  from  the  dead  to  immortality 
and  eternal  life,  so  it  was  decreed  in  the  beginning  that  man  should 
be,  and  will  be,  through  the  atonement  of  Jesus,  in  spite  of  him- 
self, resurrected  from  the  dead.  Death  came  upon  us  without  the 
exercise  of  our  agency;  we  had  no  hand  in  bringing  it  originally 
upon  ourselves;  it  came  because  of  the  transgression  of  our  first 
parents.  Therefore,  man,  who  had  no  hand  in  bringing  death 
upon  himself,  shall  have  no  hand  in  bringing  again  life  unto  himself; 
for  as  he  dies  in  consequence  of  the  sin  of  Adam,  so  shall  he  live 
again,  whether  he  will  or  not,  by  the  righteousness  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  the  power  of  his  resurrection.  Every  man  that  dies  shall  live 
again,  and  shall  stand  before  the  bar  of  God,  to  be  judged  accord- 
ing to  his  works,  whether  they  be  good  or  evil.  It  is  then  that  all 
will  have  to  give  an  account  for  their  stewardships  in  this  mortal 
life.  The  word  of  God  is  spoken  to  the  children  of  men.  It  has 
been  revealed  from  the  heavens.  It  is  extant  in  the  world.  It  is 
in  force  upon  the  people.  Those  who  reject  it  will  have  to  answer 
for  it  before  God,  the  judge  of  the  quick  and  the  dead;  while 
those  that  receive  and  obey  the  word  of  the  Lord  and  keep  his  com- 
mandments, as  I  have  read,  shall  not  only  come  to  a  knowledge  of 
the  truth,  but  shall  look  upon  the  face  of  the  Redeemer  and  shall 
see  and  know  him  as  he  is.  Furthermore,  they  will  acknowledge 
that  it  is  through  the  atonement  and  power  of  the  Savior  that  they 
are  brought  again  unto  life  immortal,  to  enjoy  eternal  felicity  in 
the  celestial  kingdom  of  God,  provided  they  have  been  obedient  to 
his  commandments. 

The  Lord  continues: 

The  elements  are  the  tabernacle  of  God ;  yea,  man  is  the  tabernacle  of  God, 
even  temples;  and  whatsoever  temple  is  defiled,  God  shall  destroy  that  temple. 

The  glory  of  God  is  intelligence,  or,  in  other  words,  light  and  truth. 

Light  and  truth  forsake  that  evil  one. 

Every  spirit  of  man  was  innocent  in  the  beginning,  and  God  having  redeemed 
man  from  the  fall,  men  became  again  in  their  infant  state,  innocent  before  God. 

And  that  wicked  one  cometh  and  taketh  away  light  and  truth,  through 
disobedience,  from  the  children  of  men,  and  because  of  the  traditions  of  their 
fathers. 


386  IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

The  word  of  the  Lord  is  truth.  You  ask,  What  is  truth?  It 
is  the  truth  that  God  lives.  What  more  is  truth?  It  is  the  truth 
that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God,  the  Redeemer  of  the  world; 
that  he  atoned  for  the  sin  of  Adam,  and  that  through  our  repent- 
ance and  obedience  to  him  we  shall  receive  a  forgiveness  of  our 
own  sins,  and  shall  be  cleansed  therefrom,  and  exalted  again  in 
the  presence  of  God,  from  whence  we  came.  It  is  truth  that 
God  has  revealed  to  the  world  that  except  a  man  be  born  again 
he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  It  is  eternal  truth 
that  except  that  a  man  be  bom  of  the  water  and  of  the  Spirit 
he  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  These  are  the 
Almighty's  truths  that  he  has  revealed  to  the  children  of  men, 
and  upon  these  we  will  stand.  We  propose  to  bear  our  testi- 
mony to  these  truths,  and  to  declare  these  principles  to  the  chil- 
dren of  men,  as  long  as  God  will  give  us  his  Spirit,  and  we  are  en- 
trusted with  this  mission  to  declare  Jesus  Christ  and  him  crucified 
and  risen  from  the  dead,  and  Joseph  Smith  raised  up  by  the  power 
of  God  to  restore  the  fulness  of  the  everlasting  gospel  and  the 
authority  of  the  holy  Priesthood  to  the  earth  in  the  dispensation 
of  the  fulness  of  times.  We  bear  this  testimony  to  the  world,  and 
we  know  that  our  testimony  is  true ;  for  we  have  received  of  that 
Spirit  of  truth  which  is  of  God,  and  of  which  Jesus  speaks  here 
through  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith.  Therefore,  our  testimony  is 
in  force  upon  the  world.  Especially  is  it  in  force  upon  those  who 
have  yielded  obedience  to  the  message  of  salvation  as  it  has  been 
restored  to  the  earth  and  declared  unto  you. 

PERSONAL   TESTIMONY. 

Now,  my  brethren  and  sisters,  I  know  that  my  Redeemer  lives. 
I  feel  it  in  every  fiber  of  my  being.  I  am  just  as  satisfied  of  it  as 
I  am  of  my  own  existence.  I  cannot  feel  more  sure  of  my  own 
being  than  I  do  that  my  Redeemer  lives,  and  that  my  God  lives, 
the  Father  of  my  Savior.  I  feel  it  in  my  soul;  I  am  converted  to 
it  in  my  whole  being.  I  bear  testimony  to  you  that  this  is  the 
doctrine  of  Christ,  the  gospel  of  Jesus,  which  is  the  power  of  God 
unto  salvation.  It  is  *'Mormonism."  But  there  is  much  more 
that  could  be  said  in  relation  to  these  matters.  "Mormonism" 
has  been   interpreted  by  one  who  was  inspired  to  mean  "more 


EDITOR'S  TABLE.  387 

good."  We  have  accepted  the  term  "Mormon."  It  having  been 
applied  to  us  by  our  enemies  simply  because  we  believed  in  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  and  we  are  not  ashamed  of  it— we  are  not 
ashamed  of  ''more  good."  We  believe  in  every  principle  and  pre- 
cept of  the  gospel,  and  in  all  the  law  of  God.  We  believe  that 
every  principle  is  essential.  We  believe  that  we  should  do  our 
duty  to  God  and  to  our  fellow-men.  We  should  do  unto  others  as 
we  would  have  them  do  to  us.  We  should  observe  the  laws  of  chas- 
tity, honesty  and  uprightness,  deal  justly  with  our  neighbors,  and 
kindly  and  mercifully  with  the  erring.  We  should  seek  to  do  good 
at  all  times  and  under  all  circumstances.  The  feeling  should  pre- 
dominate in  our  hearts  that  we  are  here,  not  to  do  evil,  but  to  do 
good;  not  to  increase  error,  but  to  diminish  it  and  to  increase  the 
knowledge  of  truth;  to  make  men  happy,  and  to  spread  happiness 
abroad  in  the  world,  by  persuading  men  to  do  that  which  is  right. 
There  is  no  real  happiness  in  wickedness.  There  is  no  real  enjoy- 
ment in  sin  and  transgression.  The  only  source  of  real  enjo3mient 
and  perfect  happiness  is  in  the  observance  of  the  laws  of  truth  and 
righteousness. 

The  Lord  bless  you,  and  help  us  all  to  live  our  religion  and  to 
keep  the  commandments  of  God,  that  we  may  look  upon  his  face, 
and  that  we  may  see  the  Redeemer  when  he  shall  come  to  the 
earth  again;  for  he  will  come,  and  when  he  does  come  again  he 
will  not  come  as  the  meek  and  lowly  Nazarene,  without  ''where  to 
lay  his  head,"  and  without  respect  and  honor,  but  he  will  come  as 
God  out  of  heaven,  clothed  with  power,  glory,  justice,  judgment 
and  truth.  He  will  come  with  the  hosts  of  heaven,  and  he  will  re- 
ceive those  who  have  kept  his  commandments  in  the  earth  as  the 
church  prepared  for  the  Bridegroom ,  while  he  will  take  vengeance 
upon  the  ungodly. 

This  is  not  my  doctrine;  it  is  the  declaration  of  the  Bible,  of  the 
ancient  prophets,  and  also  of  the  modern  prophets,  who  have 
spoken  by  inspiration.  I  am  but  repeating  their  words,  and  I  tell 
you  nothing  new.  God  bless  you  and  keep  you  in  the  path  of  duty, 
and  deliver  us  all  from  evil,  and  help  us  to  be  steadfast  and  faith- 
ful to  the  covenants  that  we  have  made,  and  to  the  cause  of  Zion 
and  of  redemption  for  the  living  and  the  dead,  is  my  prayer  in  the 
name  of  Jesus .     Amen . 


388  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

MESSAGES  FROM  THE    MISSIONS. 

During  the  half  year  ending  December  31,  1907,  there  were  seventy-five 
baptisms  in  the  Swedish  mission,  ten  ordinations  and  nineteen  children  blessed. 
The  sixty-two  missionaries  in  the  five  conferences  of  Stockholm,  Goteboig,  Skane, 
Sundsvall,  and  Norrkoping,  distributed  115,015  tracts,  and  23, 188  books,  visited 
70,426  stranger's  homes,  and  held  11,804  gospel  conversations,  and  1,550  meet- 
ings. 

From  the  annual  report  of  the  British  mission  for  1907,  published  in  the 
January  23rd  issue  of  the  Millennial  Star,  we  learn  that  there  are  thirteen  con- 
ferences in  this  mission;  99  branches,  292  missionaries,  including  one  lady,  4,667 
members,  5,268  officers  and  members,  and  877  children  under  eight  years  of  age, 
making  a  total  of  souls  of  6, 145.  During  the  year  there  were  986  baptisms. 
Aside  from  this,  the  elders  held  335,944  gospel  conversations,  distributed  4,574,- 
620  tracts  and  127,724  books.  The  number  of  meetings  held  was  15,607.  Presi- 
dent Charles  W.  Penrose,  his  co-workers,  and  the  elders  in  the  field  deserve  praise 
and  congratulations  for  the  splendid  showing  which  has  been  made.  The  T^ord  is 
certainly  blessing  their  efforts,  and  we  trust  that  he  will  continue  to  aid  them  in 
the  great  work  of  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  people.  In  five  European  missions, 
there  are  41  conferences,  715  missionaries,  17,819  souls,  and  there  were  2,101 
baptisms.    Turkey  and  Africa  are  not  included  in  this  number. 

Elders  L.  Cook  and  R.  J.  Hunsaker,  writing  from  Jackson,  Breathitt  county, 
Ky..  under  date  of  January  30,  express  their  appreciation  of  the  Era  which  they 
pronounce,  "much  better  this  year  than  ever  before,"  and  then  continue:  "We 
are  thankful  to  our  Heavenly  Father  for  opening  the  way  for  us  to  explain  the 
principles  of  the  revealed  gospel  in  its  purity,  and  to  warn  the  people  of  the  judg- 
ments that  will  befall  them  if  they  do  not  adhere  to  the  teachings  of  the  servants 
of  God.  We  have  several  earnest  investigators,  and  have  been  granted  the  privi- 
ledge  of  preaching  in  the  Presbyterian  church  at  any  time.  The  eyes  of  the  blind 
are  beginning  to  see  out  of  obscurity  and  out  of  darkness.  The  power  of  the  Holy 
Priesthood  is  being  made  manifest,  and  the  people  are  beginning  to  see  that  the 
little  stone,  spoken  of  by  the  Prophet  Daniel,  cut  out  of  the  mountains,  is  destined 
to  fill  the  whole  earth.  May  this  'marvelous  work  and  a  wonder'  still  continue  to 
advance,  is  our  earnest  prayer. ' ' 

Elder  D.  H.  Fowler,  writing  from  Independence,  Missouri,  January  20,  says: 
In  this  center  place  of  Zion  we  have  an  aggressive  and  progressive  M.  I.  A., which 
for  results  might  well  be  pitted  against  almost  any  like  organization  in  the  Stakes 
of  Zion.  We  are  stirring  the  depths  of  the  subject,  "Spiritual  Growth,"  and 
have  already  derived  an  abundance  of  nutrition.  The  Manual,  this  year,  is  a 
power.  The  people  of  this  place,  generally  speaking,  would  be  a  credit  to  any  com- 
munity, in  religious  tolerance  and  general  respect  for  others'  views.  Those  who 
seem  to  be  actuated  be  a  mistaken  zeal  of  bigotry  have  plenty  of  room  to  vent 
their  wrath,  for  they  appear  to  be  few,  or  do  rot  actively  assert  themselves.      As 


EDITOR'S  TABLE.  389 

I  glance  out  of  the  window  at  the  courthouse  grounds  yonder,  and  note  the  peace- 
ful surroundings,  it  hardly  seems  possible  that  it  is  the  spot  where,  a  few  decades 
ago,  a  murderous  rabble  howled  for  the  blood  of  the  Prophet  Joseph.  When  one 
surveys  the  peaceful  streets  of  the  town,  or  chats  pleasantly  with  its  worthy 
citizens,  one  can  little  realize  that  not  so  long  ago  said  streets  were  cleared  of 
"Mormons,"  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet.  Such  are  the  great  preparations  of  the 
Lord  for  the  bringing  about  of  "the  Zion  of  our  God''  and  of  all  His  purposes. 

Elder  Alvin  E.  Jordan,  clerk  of  the  London  conference,  writes  under  date  of 
December  31,  1907,  from  No.  97  Farleigh  Road,  Stoke  Newington,  London:  "We 
have  indeed  been  blessed  by  the  Lord  during  the  past  year,  and  we  have  reaped 
the  fruits  of  our  labors  to  a  great  degree.  We  number  at  present,  thirty-nine 
elders,  all  bright  and  energetic  men,  with  a  true  desire  to  make  known  God's 
work  among  the  people.  During  the  past  year  many  thousands  of  tracts  and 
books  have  been  distributed,  and  the  elders  have  been  constant  in  their  labors. 
As  a  result,  much  good  has  been  done,  and  one  hundred  and  thirty-two  members 
have  been  added  to  the  fold  of  Christ.  We  have  met  some  opposition  in  our  work, 
but  have  come  out  of  it  much  strengthened  for  having  maintained  our  views  and 
compared  them  with  those  of  the  world.  We  are  pleased  with  the  success  that 
has  attended  us  in  the  past,  and  know  that  if  we  are  prayerful  and  humble,  and 
always  found  doing  our  duty,  God  will  be  pleased  to  bestow  his  blessings  upon  us 
in  the  future.  The  harvest  is  ripe,  and,  with  the  help  of  the  Lord,  we  expect  to 
outdo  our  last  years'  record  during  the  new  year." 

Elder  George  W.  Simons,  No.  18  Tapscott  St.,  Kimberley,  Cape  Colony,  South 
Africa,  writes:  "We  have  summer  here  while  you  are  having  winter,  and  winter 
here  when  the  flowers  are  in  bloom  at  home.  I  enjoy  my  missionary  life  better 
than  I  expected  at  first.  South  Africa  is  a  much  better  place  than  I  imagined. 
There  are  many  white  people  here,  among  whom  we  work.  We  do  not  preach  to 
the  colored  race.  I  am  in  the  city  of  the  diamond  mines,  and  there  are  many 
diamonds  in  the  district  around  here,  but  all  the  country  belongs  to  the  Debeers 
Company,  and  no  one  is  permitted  to  search  for  diamonds  without  their  consent. 
If  any  one  should  pick  up  a  diamond  on  the  street,  which,  by-the-by,  is  very  often 
the  case,  he  is  under  obligation  to  deliver  it  at  the  Debeers  office  where  he  would 
receive  so  much  per  caret.  If  they  do  not  turn  it  in  and  are  discovered,  it  means 
a  punishment  of  seven  years'  hard  labor.  This  company  seems  to  have  its  own 
way  in  pretty  much  everything  in  this  country,  as  the  mines  are  the  only  paying 
industry  out  here.  The  diamonds  are  found  in  what  is  called  a  blue  rock.  It  is 
dug  out  of  the  earth  and  taken  into  a  field  where  it  is  scattered  and  left  for  from 
eight  to  ten  months  in  the  sun.  When  it  is  brought  out,  it  is  a  hard,  blue  rock, 
but  by  contact  with  the  air  for  a  length  of  time  it  disintegrates, when  it  is  gathered 
and  washed.  The  blue  ground  and  the  mud  float  away,  but  the  heavier  matter 
remains  in  the  bottom  and  is  loaded  into  carts  and  taken  to  a  building  called  the 
pylsator,  where  it  is  divided  into  three  classes,  the  coarse,  the  fine,  and  the  ine- 
dium.      It  is  then  fi-rst  put  through  a  flume,  and  later  through  a  second  flume  con- 


390  IMPRO  VEMENT  ERA . 

taining  a  kind  of  grease  on  the  bottom  to  which  the  diamonds  cling  while  the  other 
matter  floats  away.  There  are  seven  mines  around  this  city  and  each  employs 
about  six  thousand  Kaffirs,  besides  white  men.  If  it  were  not  for  the  mines  in 
Africa,  things  would  be  at  a  stand-still  financially,  for  since  the  war,  South  Africa 
is  in  a  bad  financial  condition.  Many  are  greatly  in  want  of  food,  and  at  the  present 
time  mine  owners  are  discharging  laborers  by  the  hundreds,  the  cause  being 
largely  political,  in  order  that  the  owners  may  gain  popularity  and  so  further 
obtain  a  hold  upon  the  land.  In  this  way  they  do  not  consider  the  people,  only 
themselves.  I  have  seen  some  of  the  workings  of  the  mines  and  expect  to  see 
more  in  the  near  future." 


NOTES. 

The  impossible  becomes  possible  when  a  restless  determination  deals  wiin  it. 
Man  was  not  created  in  God's  image,  his  nostrils  filled  with  God's  breath,  and  all 
the  earth  placed  under  his  dominion  to  meet  with  impossibilities  at  every  step. 
The  impossibilities  are  man's  own  creation,  not  God's,  and  for  man  voluntarily  to 
surround  himself  with  impossibilities  is  an  insult  to  his  Creator.  Let  him,  rather, 
stride  forth  upon  the  earth,  over  which  he  wa§  given  dominion;  let  him  hold  up  his 
head;  tighten  his  muscles;  let  the  warm  red  blood  surge  through  his  veins  and  con- 
quer. It  is  the  man  who  brings  things  to  pass  in  spite  of  difficulties,  who  honors 
his  Maker,  and  is  leader  among  men.  The  angel  who  wrestled  with  Jacob  de- 
clared, "As  a  prince  hast  thou  power  with  God  and  with  man,  and  hast  pre- 
vailed." Carlyle's  definition  of  a  king  is  "The  man  who  can."  The  man  who 
always  can't  is  a  puny  creature,  ever  growing  smaller  and  weaker.  The  man  who 
can  grows  upon  his  own  God-given  strength  until  he  becomes  a  giant,  subduing 
the  material  things  of  the  world,  realizing  his  ideals,  making  the  home,  the  com- 
munity, the  state  better,  and  proving  his  right  to  be  called  one  of  the  sons  of 
God.— rAc  Circle. 

All  sorts  and  conditions  of  men  have  excellent"  reasons  for  their  position  in 
life.  Illustrated  Bits  tells  of  a  tramp  who  had  no  illusions  about  the  cause  of 
his  own  condition: 

Mrs.  Finehealth  (at  hotel  entrance):  No,  I  have  no  money  to  spare  for 
you.     I  do  not  see  why  an  able-bodied  man  like  you  should  go  about  begging. 

Lazy  Tramp:  I  s'pose,  mum,  it's  fer  about  the  same  reason  that  a  healthy 
woman  like  you  boards  at  a  hotel,  instead  of  keeping  house. 

The  professor  in  charge  of  a  Princeton  class  room,  had  been  annoyed  by  the 
tardy  entrance  of  a  student.  He  pointedly  ceased  talking  until  the  man  took  his 
seat. 

After  lecture  the  student  apologized.  "Professor,"  said  he,  "my  watch  was 
fifteen  minutes  out  of  the  way.  It  has  bothered  me  a  good  deal  lately,  but  after 
this  I  shall  put  no  more  faith  in  it." 

■'It's  not  faith  you  want  in  it,"  replied  the  professor;  "it's  works." 


SEVENTY'S  COUNCIL  TABLE. 

BY  B.  H.  ROBERTS,  MEMBER  OF  THE  FIRST  COUNCIL. 


Of  the  Name  of  God  not  Being  Found  in  the  Book  of  Esther.— By  the 
way,  referring  to  Lesson  IX  (Year  Book,  p.  52)  and  recalling  the  fact  that  the  name 
of  God  is  not  found  in  the  Book  of  Esther,  brings  to  mind  a  thought  that  came  to  us 
while  addressing  a  quorum  engaged  on  this  lesson;  namely,  that  while  the  Book  of 
Esther  does  not  contain  the  name  of  Deity, yet  I  believe  God's  presence  throughout 
the  book  is  more  manifest  than  in  books  containing  his  name.  One  feels  in  read- 
ing Esther  that  the  existence  and  presence  of  God  is  taken  for  granted,  and  in 
this  respect  the  book  is  like  the  great,  universal  book  spread  out  before  the 
world  in  the  star-lit  heavens.  Nowhere  in  those  heavens  is  the  name  of  God  writ, 
but  no  mind  ever  contemplated  them  but  what  he  felt  the  divine  presence;  and  the 
glory  of  God,  if  not  his  name,  is  everywhere  proclaimed  in  them,  yea,  even  "his 
eternal  power  and  Godhead." 

Use  of  Seventies  as  Ward  Teachers. — We  hope  the  members  of  our 
quorums  will  cheerfully  respond  to  any  appointments  made  for  them  by  the  bishops 
as  ward  teachers.  We  urge  this  on  two  accounts,  just  as  we  do  in  saying  a  word 
for  the  use  of  our  Seventies  as  home  missionaries;  namely,  first,  we  desire 
our  Seventies  to  be  useful  in  the  ministry  at  home,  as  both  the  bishops  and  the 
people  have  need  of  their  labors  in  this  calling;  and,  secondly,  the  Seventies  need 
just  the  kind  of  training  that  is  possible  to  acquire  in  acting  as  ward  teachers. 
It  is  not  from  the  public  platform  that  the  greatest  amount  of  missionary  work  is 
done,  nor  the  most  effective  missionary  work.  It  is  at  the  fireside  of  the  people. 
It  is  in  personal  contact  with  men  and  women,  that  the  most  effective  missionary 
work  is  accomplished.  And  the  opportunity  of  going  into  the  homes  of  the  Saints, 
and  from  the  commonplaces  with  which  conversation  and  the  work  of  teaching 
necessarily  begins,  to  guide  the  conversation  to  the  consideration  and  exposition 
of  themes  of  the  gospel  worth  while,  affords  a  kind  of  training  that  every  Seventy 
needs,  and  of  which  he  should  most  cheerfully  avail  himself.  And  as  we  say  con- 
cerning the  home  missionaries,  so  we  say  to  our  Seventies  acting  as  ward  teachers: 
When  you  do  go  into  the  homes  of  the  people,  take  something  with  you.  Teach 
something  that  will  be  worth  while.  Do  not  content  yourselves  with  mere  form- 
alities and  commonplaces,  but  read  the  Scriptures,  expound  them,  pray,  sing, 
give  some  manifestation  of  light  and  spiritual  power  within  you.  Be  ambitious  to 
have  the  people  anxious  for  you  to  come.  Be  in  this  labor  twice  blessed :  bless 
those  to  whom  you  go  with  your  message ;  bless  yourself  in  acquiring  the  power  to 
deliver  your  message  effectively;  and  God  be  with  you! 


392  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

A  Word  About  the  Year  Book  Lessons.— Quite  generally  the  First 
Council  hears  good  words  about  the  Year  Book  lessons,  and  the  interest  taken  in 
them.  Much  more  good  is  resulting  from  having  an  explicit  purpose  in  view 
than  hap-hazard  methods  or  absence  of  definite  purpose.  Of  course,  ideal  condi- 
tions do  not  everywhere  obtain  in  conducting  the  class  exercises,  but  just  as  he 
who  aims  at  a  star  will  shoot  higher  than  he  who  aims  at  a  mole  hill,  so  our  quo- 
rums aiming  high  will  obtain  better  results  than  if  their  purpose  were  less  exalted. 
Here  and  there,  however,  we  hear  complaint  of  the  hardness  of  the  lessons  and 
their  length.  Too  much,  it  is  claimed,  is  given,  which  leads  us  to  believe  that 
very  likely  there  exists  some  misapprehension  as  to  the  purpose  of  our  present 
year's  course  of  study.  In  the  Introduction  to  the  Year  Book  extensive  reading 
in  the  books  of  scripture  being  reviewed  is  emphasized;  but  it  is  also  pointed  out 
that  the  object  in  our  present  year's  work  is  not  to  ponder  deeply  over  texts,  or 
study  thoroughly  those  books,  but  on  the  contrary  it  is  urged  that  we  make  a 
rapid  survey  of  them,  reading  rapidly  and  with  the  view  of  getting  the  general 
idea  of  the  various  books  of  the  scriptures  as  books,  finding  out  when,  and  how, 
and  under  what  circumstances  they  were  written,  and  something  about  the  general 
character  of  tnem,  so  that  the  student  will  have  in  mind  the  nature  of  the  scrip- 
tures as  books,  and  this  can  b«  very  rapidly  acquired.  In  this  connection  we 
would  urge  that  the  notes  of  the  lessons  are  not  the  important  things  to  read  and 
study,  but  the  references  given  in  connection  with  the  lesson  analysis.  The  notes 
are  intended  to  be  mere  side-lights  thrown  on  the  subject  to  help  and  guide  the 
student,  and  should  by  no  manner  of  means  be  regarded  as  the  chief  things  of  the 
lesson.  If  these  ideas  are  strictly  adhered  to  in  the  work,  we  think  the  lessons 
will  not  be  found  difficult  or  too  long.  But  if  after  all  the  task  is  regarded  as  a 
little  hard,  then  devote  more  energy  to  its  mastery;  and  by  practice,  the  work  of 
preparation  will  become  easier.  Remember  also  the  old  motto  of  the  Greeks , 
"The  Hard  is  the  Good." 

The  Assignment  of  Lessons.— The  lessons  of  the  Year  Book  should  be 
assigned  from  the  lesson  analysis,  not  from  the  notes.  A  short  time  since  when 
visiting  ono  of  the  quorums,  we  found  that  the  lessons  were  assigned  from  the 
notes,  each  note  being  given  to  one  member,  with  the  result  that  he  thought 
his  Seventy's  work  for  the  week  accomplished  if  he  mastered  the  subject  treated 
in  the  note!  Imagine  that  being  the  lesson  for  a  Seventy  for  a  whole  week! 
How  much  mental  activity  would  be  cultivated  by  that  achievement!  How  much 
intellectuality  would  be  developed !  How  soon  would  a  Seventy  attain  spiritual 
power!  We  do  not  iesire  to  say  anything  harsh,  but  such  ideas  of  Seventy's 
work  is  rather  contemptible.  The  notes  are  the  least  important  part  of  the  les- 
son. It  is  the  scriptures  we  want  our  Seventies  to  read,  and  get  their  ideas  from 
these  original  sources.  The  notes  are  merely  suggestions  to  help  the  student,  and 
on  some  important  matters  in  the  lessons  there  are  no  notes  at  all.  Moreover, 
where  the  assignment  method  of  teaching  is  followed,  we  suggest  that  it  is  well  to 
give  the  whole  of  the  larger  subdivisions  of  the  lesson  to  one  person,  and,  not  distri- 
bute the  minor  divisions  each  to  a  member.  One  of  the  purposes  to  be  accomplished 
in  these  lessons  is  to  train  our  members  in  the  combination  of  ideas  leading  up  to 
some  general  conclusion  from  all  premises  considered,  and  if  the  subject-  be  too 
minutely  divided,  and  then  these  minute   subdivisions  given    to  separate  persons. 


SEVENTTS  COUNCIL  TABLE.  393 

we  would  mis8  the  training  that  comes  from  combining  many  ideas  to  one  general 
end.  Therefore,  the  teachers  should  so  assign  lessons  as  to  require  each  one  who 
receives  an  assignment  to  generalize  from  his  dat-i  some  conclusion.  To  be  more 
explicit,  take  Lesson  IX  (page  52  of  the  Year  Book)  for  an  example.  The  gen- 
eral lesson  is  on  the  historical  books  of  the  Old  Testament.  Subdivision  I, 
"The  Books  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah,"  should  be  given  to  one  member  and  let  him 
treat  these  books  under  the  subdivisions  1  and  2,  with  their  further  subdivisions. 
Then  give  the  second  general  division  of  the  lesson,  the  Book  of  Esther,  to  another, 
allowing  his  treaties  on  the  subject  to  cover  all  the  subdivisions  following  the  title, 
that  is,  let  him  treat  cf  the  authorship  and  historical  character  of  the  Book  of  Esther ; 
also  the  Feast  of  Purim  and  its  value  as  an  historical  monument;  also  let  him  discuss 
the  omission  of  the  name  of  God  in  that  book.  We  further  suggest  to  the  teachers 
the  importance  of  an  intelligent  pre-view  of  the  lessons  when  assigning  them  and 
pointing  out  some  of  the  prominent  features.  Especially  will  correlating  some  of 
the  lesson's  features  with  present  day  questions  of  interest,  and  the  like,  create 
and  intensify  interest  upon  the  cnming  week's  home  study  and  preparation.  Do 
not  neglect  pre- viewing;  it  is  quite  as  important  as  re-viewing. 

The  Use  of  Seventies  as  Home  Missionaries. — The  question  has  come 
up  in  some  quorums  as  to  whether  our  Seventies  should  be  used  by  the  local 
authorities,  Presidents  of  Stakes,  for  home  missionaries,  as  sometimes  home  mis- 
sion appointments  would  call  them  away  from  attendance  upon  their  class  meetings 
on  Sunday  mornings.  In  reply  to  inquiries  made  upon  the  subject, the  First  Council 
calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  in  most  cases  where  home  mission  service  is 
required  of  the  members  of  our  quorums,  the  place  of  appointment  can  be  reached 
after  the  class  of  the  quorum  meeting  on  Sunday  morning,  and  only  in  compara- 
tively few  cases  would  it  be  necessary  to  miss  the  class  meeting  to  fill  home  mis- 
sion appointments.  And  where  that  becomes  really  necessary,  we  suggest  to  our 
quorums  that  they  regard  as  a  legitimate  excuse  for  non-attendance  at  any  quorum 
meeting,  the  fact  that  a  member  was  filling  a  home  mission  appointment.  Work 
as  home  missionaries  is  the  veiy  best  kind  of  training  for  our  Seventies.  It  gives 
them  an  opportunity  to  exercise  themselves  in  the  art  of  teaching  the  gospel,  and 
is  therefore  desirable,  not  only  because  we  wish  our  members  to  render  these  ser- 
vices in  the  home  ministry  of  tj  e  Church,  and  for  the  good  of  the  people  to  whom 
they  minister,  but  also  it  is  desirable  on  their  own  account  for  the  training  that 
it  affords  them.  To  put  it  in  the  form  of  a  pleasantry,  it  gives  tiem  a  chance  to 
practice  on  the  people  at  home.  A  practice,  which  as  a  rule,  the  Seventies  very 
much  need,  and  to  which  our  people — good,  patient  souls!  will  submit.  And,  by 
the  way,  when  our  Seventies  fill  home  mission  appointments,  we  suggest  to  them 
that  they  make  it  a  point  to  have  something  to  say  to  the  people.  Do  not  go  to 
them  with  empty  hands,  (we  had  almost  said  empty  heads)  take  something  with 
you,  let  both  mind  and  heart  be  full.  Let  us  build  up  a  reputation  throughout 
Israel  for  the  Seventies  that  will  cause  the  people  to  say,  'Some  of  the  Seventies 
will  be  at  meeting  as  home  missionaries  today, we  shall  have  a  mental  and  spiritual 
feast."  Take  some  of  the  ideas  to  be  gathered  from  your  Seventies  lessons  and 
exploit  them  before  the  people.  You  will  be  astonished  how  interested  the  people 
will  be  in  many  of  these  subjects. 


MUTUAL  WORK. 


HAWAIIAN  M.  1.  A. 

The  annual  r«port  of  the  conjoint  Mutual  Improvement  Associations  of  the 
Hawaiian  Mission  for  the  year  ending  December  31,  1907,  has  been  received, 
signed  by  Samuel  E.  Woolley,  president,  and  W.  J.  Flowers,  clerk  of  the  mission. 
The  names  of  the  seven  conferences  are:  Laie,  Oahu,  Kauai,  Hailo,  W.  Maui 
Honolulu,  So.  Hawaii.  In  these  seven  conferences  there  are  25  branches,  and  each 
branch  has  an  organization  of  the  M.  I.  A.,  properly  supplied  with  presidents, 
counselors,  secretaries  and  treasurers,  most  of  whom  are  natives.  There  are 
1, 188  members,  1,071  active  members,  with  an  average  attendance  of  613.  There 
were  1,042  meetings  held  altogether.  The  largest  branch  is  Honolulu,  with  an 
active  enrollment  of  125,  and  an  average  attendance  of  75.  Then  follows  Laie, 
with  100  enrolled,  80  active  and  49  average  attendance;  Kekaha,  with  87  active 
and  an  average  attendance  of  45.  The  smallest  enrollment  is  in  Molakia,  16, 
and  an  average  attendance  of  12;  and  Kapaia,  with  an  enrollment  of  18  and  an 
average  attendance  of  14.  The  Y.  M.  M.  I.  A.  Manual  and  roll  and  record  books 
are  used,  and  in  Laie,  Waikiki  and  Honolulu  there  are  small  beginnings  for  libra- 
ries. Elders  Eugene  J.  Neff,  H.  H.  Millward,  and  W.  C.  Jefferies  are  the  mission 
president  and  counselors  of  the  M.  I.  A. 


MUTUAL   NOTES. 


Liahona  the  Elder's  Journal,  is  authority  for  the  statement  that  a  Mutual  Im- 
provement association  has  been  organized  in  St.  Joseph,  Mo. ,  and  that  much  interest  is 
taken  in  the  work.  The  current  Manual  is  the  text  book.  On  January  24, a  Y.  L.  M.I. 
A.  was  organized  in  Independence,  Mo-,  with  May  Green,  President;  Phebe  Madsen, 
Joanna  Oleson,  counselors;  Minnie  Anderson,  secretary;  Eliza  Summerhays,  treas- 
urer. They  will  meet  conjointly  with  the  young  men  for  preliminary  programs,  and 
will  study  the  current  outlines,  as  found  in  the  Young  Woman's  Journal. 

In  an  introduction  to  a  notice  of  the  3rd  ward,  Brigham  City,  last  month,  it 
was  stated  that  there  was  an  Era  in  every  family  in  the  ward.  This  is  not  quite 
correct,  but  the  officers,  as  was  stated  in  the  body  of  the  writing, aim  to  place  one 
in  every  home.  It  should  also  be  noted  that  there  are  695  souls  in  the  ward,  and 
115  subscribers,  not  929  souls  and  110  subscribers,  as  before  stated. 

Joseph  Eeber,  president  of  the  Littlefield  association,  an  unorganized  ward  in 
St.  George  Stake,  Utah,  claims  to  have  broken  the  record  for  obtaining  subscrip- 
tions for  the  Era.  He  says:  "I  have  only  seven  families  in  this  place  to  can- 
vass, and  have  secured  eight  subscribers."  "He  hopes  this  is  a  record-breaker  for 
the  Era,  ' '  and  it  certainly  is,  for  no  other  ward  up  to  date  has  reported  more 
subscribers  than  families. 


EVENTS  AND  COMMENTS. 

BY  EDWARD  H.    ANDERSON. 


Edmund  Clarence  Stedman. — The  "banker-poet"  died  in  New  York, 
January  18,  1908.  He  was  born  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  Octobers,  1833,  entered 
Yale  in  the  class  of  1853,  where  he  excelled  in  Greek,  and  in  English  composition. 
A  student  prank  brought  his  career  as  undergraduate  to  an  abrupt  termination; 
so  he  was  compelled  to  leave  school,  and  in  1856  he  began  contributing  to  various 
New  York  journals.  During  1861-3  he  was  Washington  correspondent  of  the  New 
York  World,  and  then  held  a  post  in  the  office  of  Attor- 
ney-General Bates.  In  1869,  he  entered  business  on  the 
stock  exchange,  because,  as  he  is  said  to  have  expressed 
himself,  "I  needed  to  be  independent  in  order  to  write 
and  study."  He  was  a  member  of  the  stock  exchange 
until  he  retired  from  business  in  1900.  In  1869,  having 
now  become  honored,  he  was  restored  to  the  roll  of  his 
class  and  awarded  the  master's  degree.  His  first  collec- 
tion of  poems  was  published  in  1860.  His  Victorian 
Poets  appeared  in  1875,  and  has  passed  through  many 
editions.  The  Poets  of  America  appeared  in  1885.  Pan 
in  Wall  Street  is  considered  one  of  his  best  poems, 
though   his   kinsman,     Thomas    Wentworth    Higginson, 

thinks  the  little  poem,  Stanzas  for  Music,  is  the  one  that  will  live,  and  that  only 
few  of  his  others  will  survive  the  test  of  time,  even  as  Holmes  Last  Leaf  and  the 
Chambered  Nautilus,  are  about  the  only  poems  among  his  that  will  prove  immortal. 
Stedman  was  a  remarkable  combination  of  a  man  of  letters  and  a  man  of  aifairs, 
whose  career  furnished  a  moral  for  business  men  who  have  no  taste  for  intellect- 
ual recreation,  no  desire  beyond  the  daily  routine  of  their  oflSces,  and  who  waste 
their  powers  in  the  one  toil  of  gathering  and  scattering  dollars.  A  writer  in  the 
New  York  Sun  says  of  Mr.  Stedman:  "His  conversation  was  witty,  with  a  dash 
of  the  business  man's  bluntness,  but  always  genial  and  sympathetic ,  He  was  a 
hard  worker,  a  brave  man,  and  a  loyal  friend." 

George  Crismon.— Only  few  of  the  pioneers  of  1847  remain.  Elder  George 
Grismon,  pathfinder  and  pioneer  was  one  of  them.  He  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City 
in  October,  1847,  and  died  there  Jan.  27,  1908.  He  was  born  in  Scott  county, 
Illinois,  in  1833,  so  that  he  was  only  a  young  man  when  he  came  west.  His  father, 
Charles  Crismon,  joined  the  Church  in  1836,  and  with  his  family  moved  to  Cald- 
well county,  Mo. ,  [in   1838.      When  the  Saints  were  driven  out  of  Missouri,  the 


396 


IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 


Crismon  family  returned  to  Illinois,  and  later,  in  1841,  built  a  house  in  Macedonia, 
Hancock  county,   about  20  miles  from  Nauvoo  and  eight  from  Carthage.     Here 

they  remained  until  1845  when  they  gathered  to 
Nauvoo,  from  which  city  they  were  expelled  with 
the  Saints  in  1846,  and  proceeded  to  Winter  Quar- 
ters. They  spent  the  winter  of  1846-7  in  Nio- 
bara,  Nebraska,  and  came  over  the  plains  the 
summer  following.  Remaining  in  Salt  Lake  until 
1849,  the  family  went  to  California  engaging  some 
in  mining,  and  when,  in  1857,  the  Church  began 
to  colonize  San  Bernardino  Co.  the  Crismon  family 
moved  thither  and  erected  there  the  first  saw-mill 
ever  built  south  of  Monterey.  Owing  to  the 
Johnston  army  troubles  they  returned  to  Utah, 
arriving  in  1858.  The  family  decided  that  if 
their  people  were  to  be  annihilated,  they  would 
share  the  same  fate,  and  so  started  by  team 
for  Utah  over  the  deserts.  President  Joseph  F. 
Smith,  on  returning  from  a  mission  to  Hawaii,  engaged  to  drive  one  of  their  teams , 
and,  as  he  testified  at  Elder  Crismon's  funeral  which  was  held  in  the  14th  ward 
assembly  Hall,  February  1,  it  was  while  on  this  duty  that  he  learned  to  know 
George  Crismon  as  a  true  man—  a  man  of  honor  and  unsullied  integrity, — true  to 
his  people  and  his  friends,  ever  ready  to  respond  to  any  arduous  call  of  duty.  In 
1865  6  the  Crismons  built  the  Busier  mills  on  State  street.  In  1878  George  and 
his  father  removed  to  Arizona,  and  there  helped  to  pioneer  the  country  and  settle 
the  Saints.  They  built  the  Crismon  mill  at  Phoenix.  Elder  George  Crismon  spent 
nearly  all  his  days  in  pioneer  work,  in  milling,  railroad  building,  mining,  and 
other  industries.  He  helped  build  the  Union  Pacific,  and  the  Oregon  Short  Line 
from  Granger  75  miles  west,  and  paid  much  attention  to  the  development  of  min- 
ing property  in  the  state.  He  was  always  a  faithful  member  of  the  Church,  was 
at  one  time  counselor  to  the  bishop  of  the  14th  ward,  and  at  his  death  a  High 
Counselor  in  the  Granite  stake  of  Zion.  He  filled  a  mission  to  England  in  1872-3. 
In  the  early  days  he  belonged  to  the  local  militia  and  had  an  active  career  as 
Indian  fighter.  Two  terms  he  served  as  collector  of  Salt  Lake  county,  and  in 
1884-5-6  as  a  member  of  the  Salt  Lake  City  Council.  He  has  a  large  family  to 
revere  and  honor  his  name,  and  friends  in  all  parts  of  the  great  West  for  the 
development  of  which  he  devoted  his  days. 

Huntsville  and  Prohibition. — The  people  of  Huntsville,  Weber  county, 
should  feel  encouraged,  and  deserve  congratulation,  upon  the  decision  of  Judge  J. 
A.  Howell,  rendered  Jnnuary  16,  in  which  he  sustained  the  city  ofiicers  chosen  by 
the  citizens  who  favored  the  abolition  of  the  liquor  saloon  in  that  city.  The  elec- 
tion was  held  November  5,  last,  and  Hon.  Nels  Lofgren  was  elected  mayor  with  a 
full  ticket  favoring  prohibition.  The  election  was  contested  by  N.  C.  Mortensen, 
in  the  Second  District  Court,  but  it  was  found  that  the  ticket  fairly  won.      Now 


EVENTS  AND  COMMENTS.  397 

it  is  in  order  for  the  newly  elected  officers  to  carry  out  the  principles  upon  which 
they  were  elected,  by  abolishing  the  saloons,  and  making  their  city  a  pioneer  in  a 
movement  that  it  is  to  be  hoped  will  shortly  make  itself  a  force  for  similar  action 
in  every  city  and  town  of  Utah,  and  ultimately  result  in  state  prohibition. 

On  January  25,  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad  announced  that  all  employ- 
ees engaged  in  running  or  directing  trains  must  be  total  abstainers  from  intoxi- 
cants. This  is  only  one  out  of  many  great  corporations  that  have  made  fiis  order. 
Why  should  not  men  who  direct  a  city  or  a  state  be  as  temperate  as  those  who 
direct  a  railroad?  Their  work  is  quite  as  important,  when  we  count  the  influence 
of  their  example  on  the  young  men . 

Danish  Painter  and  Poet  Dead.— Since  1872,  when  his  first  collection  of 
poems  appeared,  until  the  late  90s,  Holger  Henrik  Herholdt  Drachmann,  has  been 
the  acknowledged  Danish  advocate  of  European  radicalism.  He  was  the  embodi- 
ment in  his  nation  of  the  restlessness  so  pronounced,  both 
there  and  in  the  nations  of  Europe  generally,  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  nineteenth  century.  It  must  be  stated, 
however,  that  his  sentiments  underwent  considerable  mo- 
dification, as  he  grew  older.  He  was  born  October  9, 
1846,  at  Copenhagen,  and  died  at  Hornbeck,  near  the 
city  of  his  birth,  January  14,  1908.  He  received  his 
education  in  his  native  city;  and  between  1866  and  1870 
studied  painting  at  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts,  achieving 
some  success  in  the  painting  of  marine  views.  Under  the 
guidance  of  his  contemporary,  George  Brandes,  a  Danish- 
Jewish  literary  critic,  four  years  his  senior,  he  abandoned 
painting,  and  devoted  himself  to  literature,  producing, 
besides  his  splendid  lyric  poems,  a  large  number  of  popular  novels.  No  one  has 
ever  succeeded  in  painting  with  so  great  poetic  effect  the  life  of  the  fishers  and 
sailors  of  Denmark  as  Hulger  Drachmann.  He  wove  the  Danish  language  into 
song  and  story  as  no  other  writer  since  Oehlenschlaeger. 

First  Representatives  from  Manila. — Congress  has  provided  by  law  for 
two  delegates  to  represent  the  Philippine  Islands  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
of  the  United  States  Congress.  These  were  to  be  elected  one  each  by  the  new 
Philippine  Legislature  and  the  Philippine  Commission,  which  latter  consists  of  four 
Americans  and  three  Filipinos.  The  commission  chose  recently  Hon.  Benito  Le- 
garda,  and  the  assembly,  Hon.  Pabla  Ocampo  de  Leon.  Legarda  is  of  Spanish  de- 
scent, being  born  in  Manila,  54  years  ago.  He  is  a  graduate  of  the  local  uni- 
versity, Santo  Tomas,  with  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Laws,  and  one  of  the  wealthi- 
est and  most  influential  in  the  whole  country.  He  has  traveled  largely  in  Europe, 
speaks  well  several  languages  with  an  almost  perfect  command  of  English,  has 
visited  the  United  States  four  times  and  was  a  member  of  the  Philippine  Com- 
mission appointed  to  attend  the  St.  Louis  Exposition  in  1904.  His  manner  and 
conversation  are  said  to  be  charming,  and  he  is  partial  to  our  institutions,  so  that 
he  will  be  a  most  acceptable  delegate  in  Washington.      He  is  a  member  of  the 


398  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

Progresista,  or  Government  party,  and  has  declared  for  eventual  independence  for 
the  Philippines,  but  only  when  the  United  States  shall  consider  the  Filipinos  pre- 
pared for  the  great  responsibility  of  self-government. 


Mr,  Ocampo  is  a  native  of  the  islands,  apure  Filipino  "in  head  and  face,"  be- 
longing to  an  old  and  well-to-do  Filipino  family.  He  was  born  and  graduated  in 
the  same  city  and  college  as  Mr.  Legarda,  is  a  prominent  patriot,  politician  and 
writer,  and  is  one  of  the  leading,  though  most  conservative,  Nacionalistas ,  which 
party  is  founded  upon  the  idea  that  "the  Filipinos  are  a  distinct  nation,  capable 
of  self-government,  and  that  the  United  States  should  grant  them  independence 
at  an  early  date. ' '  The  two  delegates  will  work  together  in  all  things  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  islands,  unless  the  subject  of  independence  arises.  Their  chief  aim  will 
be  to  improve  the  economic  conditions  of  the  islands,  for,  owing  to  the  cattle 
plague,  which  has  killed  90  per  cent  of  the  work  animals,  the  situation  is  worse 
than  for  30  years.  Their  chief  aim  will  be  to  show  Congress  the  need  of  lower- 
ing or  repealing  the  duty  on  sugar  and  tobacco. 

The  Portuguese  Tragedy.  —  The  little  kingdom  of  Portugal,  lying  im- 
mediately west  of  Spain,  is  so  far  removed  from  a  position  of  consequence  in 
European  politics  that  its  doings  are  not  usually  of  world-wide  importance.  The 
assassination,  however,  of  King  Carlos  and  the  Crown  Prince,  has  created  an  un- 
usual interest  in  the  present  political  status  of  Portugal.  The  story  of  the  as- 
sassination is  simple.      The  causes  leading  up  to  it  are  not  so  easy  to  understand. 

From  one  of  the  earliest  accounts  to  reach  this  country,  it  appears  that  King 
Carlos,  his  Queen  Amelia,  the  Crown  Prince  Luiz  Filippe,  and  Prince  Manuel  were 
visiting  a  fair  at  Villa  Vicosa.      They  returned  by  boat  and  landed  at  the  quay  at 


EVENTS  AND  COMMENTS.  399 

Lisbon  at  about  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  February  1.  They  were  met  at  the 
landing  by  th3  dictator, Franco,  and  two  other  cabinet  ministers.  These,  however, 
did  not  accompany  the  royal  party  to  the  palace.  The  king  and  his  party  took  a 
landau.  He  and  the  queen  faced  the  horses,  while  the  crown  prince  and  his  brother 
Manuel  sat  opposite  their  parents.  When  the  party  reached  a  square  in  the  city 
known  as  Praca  do  Commercio,  two  parties  of  men  moved  rapidly  towards  the 
royal  vehicle.  One  party  stepped  in  front  of  the  horses  which  the  driver  brought 
to  a  stand.  The  party  of  men  in  the  rear  of  the  vehicle  threw  aside  their  Spanish 
cloaks,  drew  out  their  carbines,  and  began  a  fusillade  at  the  king,  who  rose  from 
his  seat  and  faced  his  assailants.  He  was  immediately  shot  dead.  The  queen 
threw  herself  in  front  of  the  crown  prince  whom  she  sought  to  protect,  but  he 
arose  and  pressed  her  in  his  seat,  while  he  faced  the  assassins  who  opened  fire 
upon  him.  The  young  prince  Manuel  escaped  with  a  slight  wound,  and  the  queen 
escaped  by  the  promptness  of  a  police  who  shot  down  one  of  the  regicides  who 
was  in  the  act  of  taking  aim  at  the  queen.  The  driver,  as  soon  as  the  way  before 
him  was  opened,  drove  to  a  near  by  arsenal  where  the  king  was  found  to  be  dead 
and  where  the  crown  prince  died  in  about  five  minutes.  The  queen  was  prostrate 
with  grief;  and  it  is  said  she  passed  the  entire  night  with  one  hand  upon  the  face 
of  her  husband,  and  the  other  upon  the  face  of  her  son. 

The  circumstances  leading  up  to  this  tragedy  date  back  to  May,  1907,  when 
King  Carlos  dissolved  the  Portuguese  Parliament  and  conferred  dictatorial  power 
upon  his  Prime  Minister,  Franco.  The  Parliament  was  divided  into  small  groups 
of  partisans  whose  conflicts  with  one  another,  and  whose  jealousies,  were  so  great 
that  the  Parliament  was  unable  to  transact  even  the  ordinary  business  involved  in 
the  daily  affairs  of  government. 

From  the  reports  which  reached  this  country  at  the  time  the  Portuguese  Par- 
liament was  dissolved,  it  would  appear  that  Portugal  was  the  victim  of  the  worst 
sort  of  graft.  The  politicians  held  high  salaried  sinecures.  It  is  said  that  single 
individuals  held  as  many  as  eleven  salaried  ofiices  at  the  same  time.  One  politi- 
cian drew  $12,500  a  year  as  minister  to  China,  and  during  the  term  of  that  office 
never  left  Portugal.  It  is  said  that  he  held  ia  number  of  other  positions  and  drew 
salaries  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  more  than  $30,000  a  year.  In  another 
case  it  is  said  that  Parliament  donated  certain  sums  of  money  to  a  nunnery  which 
had  ceased  to  exist;  the  moneys,  however,  appropriated  for  its  support  went  into 
the  pockets  of  politicians. 

The  king  repeatedly  warned  the  leaders  of  Parliament,  or  the  Cortes,  as  it  is 
called  in  that  country,  that  they  must  get  together  and  transact  the  necessary, 
though  temporary,  business  of  the  country.  His  warnings  were  not  heeded.  Fi- 
nally he  decided  upon  a  bold  stroke  by  which  he  issued  a  decree  suspending  the 
constitution,  and  appointed  his  Prime  Minister  Franco  a  dictator,  'with  practically 
unlimited  power.  Franco  was  a  strong  man,  and  ruled  with  an  iron  hand.  The 
army  was  loyal  to  the  king;  the  riots,  therefore,  which  followed  in  Lisbon  and 
other  leading  cities  were  promptly  subdued.  Newspapers  were  suspended,  meet- 
ings prohibited,  political  clubs  disbanded,  and  a  strict  censorship  over  the  press 
established. 


400  IMPROVEMENT  ERA. 

For  a  while  the  king  refrained  from  attending  public  functions  where  he 
feared  attempts  would  be  made  upon  his  life.  Bombs  were  found  in  a  theatre 
which  it  was  expected  he  would  attend.  Matters,  however,  quieted  down,  and 
little  by  little  the  king  and  his  minister  moved  about  more  freely  without  the  at- 
tendance of  armed  guards,  until  February  1,  when  the  whole  kingdom  was  shocked 
by  the  sad  news  of  the  assassinations.  It  is  supposed  that  the  Republicans,  who 
have  among  them  a  number  of  Socialists,  caused  the  assassination  of  the  king. 
There  was  no  apparent  disposition  among  the  masses  of  the  Portuguese  towards 
a  revolution,  and  the  army  was  thoroughly  loyal  to  the  monarchy. 

Young  Manuel  was  only  eighteen  when  the  tragedy  occurred,  having  been 
born  in  Lisbon,  November  15,  1889,  but  according  to  the  constitution  he  is  author- 
ized to  take  up  the  reins  of  government  at  that  age.  The  Prime  Minister,  Franco, 
according  to  despatches,  has  fled  from  the  country.  At  any  rate,  a  new  ministry 
has  been  appointed.  The  incident  in  itself  may  have  been  classed  along  with  other 
assassinations  of  monarchs,  in  recent  years,  but  for  the  attitude  of  Socialist  bodies 
in  the  parliaments,  in  some  of  the  leading  European  countries.  Naturally  the 
heads  of  governments  were  prompt  in  telegraphing  expressions  of  sympathy  to  the 
queen  of  the  Portuguese  people.  When,  however,  similar  action  was  undertaken 
in  the  legislative  department  in  different  governments,  the  Socialists  became  strong 
in  the  opposition  to  expressions  of  sympathy.  In  France,  the  Socialists  noisily 
interrupted  Mr.  Pinchon  in  his  efforts  to  express  sympathy  for  Portugal.  The 
Unified  Socialists  in  France  went  so  far  as  to  introduce  a  measure  expressing  the 
Chamber's  sympathy  with  their  fellow  Republicans  in  Portugal.  The  president  of 
this  Chamber  refused  to  submit  the  motion. 

In  Rome ,  the  Republican  Municipal  Counselors  became  angry  with  the  mayor 
who  telegraphed  condolence  to  Queen  Amelia,  and  who  had  ordered  the  city  flag 
at  half  mast.  This  intense  opposition  grew  out  of  the  refusal  on  the  part  of 
Carlos  to  visit  Italy  and  Italy's  king,  upon  the  order  of  the  Pope  that  he  should 
not  do  so. 

In  Berlin,  when  the  president  of  the  Reichstag  addressed  the  house  in  expres- 
sions of  indignation  at  the  assassination  of  the  king  and  the  crown  prince  in  Por- 
tugal, several  members  at  once  arose  in  token  of  sympathy  with  the  president's 
remarks.  The  Social  Democratic  Deputies,  however,  did  not  stand,  but  left  the 
house  before  the  address  was  ended.  In  Hungary,  the  government  submitted  to . 
Parliament  a  motion  of  sympathy  for  the  family  of  the  late  King  Carlos.  The 
Independent  party  at  once  opposed  the  motion,  on  the  ground  that  Carlos  had 
violated  the  constitution  of  Portugal.     The  motion  was  withdrawn. 

The  strong  stand  of  the  leading  Socialists  in  different  countries  of  Europe 
against  sympathetic  expressions  over  the  dej,th  of  the  king  must  be  taken  as  a 
measure  of  sympathy  with  the  assassins  whose  work  they  refuse  to  condemn,  even 
if  they  do  not  condone  it.  European  Socialism  is  of  that  violent  character  that 
might  make  it  easy  to  convert  it  into  anarchy,  if  the  psychological  moment  ar- 
rived. The  growth  of  Socialism  throughout  Europe  makes  such  an  attitude 
dangerous  to  the  internal  stability  of  the  present  governments  of  continental 
Europe. — Dr.  J.  M.  Tanner. 


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